Overview, order of play, way to watch and predict

The main event

Former world champion Michael Smith will be hoping to avoid a potential banana peel when he takes on Kevin Doets in the World Darts Championship on Thursday.

The 34-year-old meets the Dutchman in the second round, a repeat of their first-round meeting last year, in which Smith had to come back from 2-1 down to win 3-2.

Doets looked sharp as he saw off Noah-Lynn van Leuven in the first leg but remains an underdog against the 2023 winner.

Bully Boy is firmly part of Ally Pally folklore after his epic nine-dart performance against Michael van Gerwen en route to triumph in January 2023, but he heads into the final and needs a strong championship to remain in the top 10 of the PDC’s Order of Merit.

THE BEST LEG OF ALL TIME! 🤯🔥

MICHAEL VAN GERWEN MISSES D12 BY NINE ARROWS AND THEN SMITH HAS A PERFECT LEG HIMSELF!

ONE OF THE GREATEST THINGS YOU WILL EVER SEE IN SPORTS. pic.twitter.com/WyKWFcxq5V

— PDC Darts (@OfficialPDC) January 3, 2023

“I really don’t (think about it), because the only thing that stresses me out now is the questions about it. But I’m not stressing about it because I’m not going to make the top 16,” Smith told Sky Sports.

“I could drop out of the top 10 if I don’t get my finger out, but that means that next year, since it practically took me a year, I have nothing to defend.

“So next year I’ve probably got around £120,000 to defend, so I’m going back to work anyway. So next year, no problem, no pressure, I just want to play darts. On the other hand, my management team can worry about it, my family can worry about it, I just want to play.

“Until I drop out of 64, because then I’ll retire. If I drop out of 64, I won’t go to Q school, because I know I wasn’t good enough, so I’ll literally start something else.”

Mensur Suljovic returns to Ally Pally after a year at home last year when he takes on Canadian Matt Campbell.

Campbell enjoyed an impressive Ally Pally 12 months ago when he dismissed Lawrence Ilagan and James Wade before crossing paths with teenage sensation Luke Littler.

Elsewhere, Romeo Grbavac takes on Callan Rydz and Robert Owens takes on Gabriel Clemens in eight matches during the day.

Order of play

Afternoon session (from 12.30pm UK time)

• Chris Landman vs. Lok Yin Lee (R1)
• Callan Rydz v Romeo Grbavac (R1)
• Martin Lukeman vs. Nitin Kumar (R1)
• Gabriel Clemens vs. Robert Owen (R2)

Evening session (from 19:00 UK time)

• Nick Kenny vs. Stowe Buntz (R1)
• Mensur Suljović vs. Matt Campbell (R1)
• Scott Williams vs. Niko Springer (R1)
• Michael Smith vs. Kevin Doets (R2)

How to watch

The PDC World Championship is shown on Sky Sports in the UK.
You can watch the afternoon session on Sky Sports Darts and Sky Sports Main Event at 12.30pm, with the evening session starting at 7pm.

Predictions

Expect no trouble for Smith in the headline slot, with Campbell also looking to enjoy another win against Suljovic.

We’re also backing Grbavac and Owens to win, as well as Scott Williams, Nick Kenny and Martin Lukeman.