World Matchplay darts: Former champions move into the last 16

Day three of darts’ summer showpiece saw the first round draw to a close at the Winter Gardens, where Jonny Clayton joined Wright, Van den Bergh and Searle in moving through to round two.

Michael van Gerwen’s shock exit on Sunday evening blew the bottom half of the draw wide open, and Wright will be looking to capitalise after brushing aside UK Open champion Andrew Gilding.

Gilding punished a sluggish start from Wright to move 2-0 up, although finishes of 107 and 104 from the Scot saw him lead 3-2 at the first break.

Wright extended his winning run to eight legs before two holds of throw helped him to close out an emphatic 10-4 victory.

“The fans were brilliant. It’s nice to be back on this stage,” reflected Wright, who now plays Searle on Wednesday.

“I didn’t feel comfortable at all up there, but it’s a new day against Ryan, and I will be a better player on Wednesday night.”

Searle produced the performance of the opening round to blitz the returning van Barneveld, averaging 105.19 for a first victory in Blackpool.

Van Barneveld – making his first appearance at the World Matchplay since 2018 – drew first blood with a 14-dart hold.

Searle soon stamped his authority on the contest to move 3-2 ahead before winning seven of the last nine legs to complete a 10-4 rout.

“I hadn’t won a game here before so there was a little bit of pressure on me,” admitted Searle, who posted his highest televised average.

“Raymond is a legend. I grew up watching him on TV before I was even playing darts, so it’s weird for me now to be playing him at the World Matchplay.”

Van den Bergh, the 2020 champion, produced a blistering late burst to see off European champion Ross Smith, 10-8, in arguably the match of the tournament so far.

Smith had led 3-2 before Van den Bergh levelled up the tie with a clinical 117 checkout in leg eight.

Smith was being outscored by the Belgian, but a 134 checkout saw him level at 6-6 as the pair continued to trade holds.

With the scores locked at 8-8, Van den Bergh raced to the finish line with back-to-back 12-dart legs.

“Wow, what a game,” said Van den Bergh, one of only three former champions left in this year’s tournament.

“I love the Winter Gardens and I love Blackpool. I just focus on what I can do and I’ve managed to beat the European champion.”

Van den Bergh’s reward is a last 16 clash against Clayton, who held off a late fightback from Gabriel Clemens for a 10-8 win.

With Clayton having cantered into a 9-5 lead, a run of three straight legs saw Clemens make it 9-8 before the Welshman sealed victory with an 11-darter.

“There were a few nerves, but the crowd were fantastic and I’ve done the job tonight,” insisted Clayton, who dedicated the win to his ill father.

“That was tough. It wasn’t the best version of Gabriel Clemens, but it wasn’t the best of Jonny Clayton either.”