The World Championship is speeding towards the end of the tournament. The semi-finals will be played today. First it’s time to look back at the 2023 Cazoo World Darts Championship quarter finals. After the second we posted our betting tips post and said to put your free bets on Michael van Gerwen. Since then his odds to win the tournament dropped from 5/2 to 1/2!!
2023 Cazoo World Darts Championship quarter finals
Four quarter finals have been played. After an exciting tournament, only Michael van Gerwen and Gerwyn Price where left as former champions.
Van der Bergh versus Clayton
After Van den Bergh and Clayton were tied in sets up to and including 3-3, the Belgian managed to place the decisive break in the seventh set. Then The DreamMaker finished it in the eighth set. He scored the maximum score of 180 thirteen times in the match and his average was 95.49. Van den Bergh, who eliminated compatriot Kim Huybrechts in the previous round, already reached the quarterfinals in 2018 and 2020, but after defeats against Rob Cross and Nathan Aspinall respectively, he was unable to reach the last four at the time. He has now succeeded and in the next round a duel with Michael van Gerwen or Chris Dobey awaits.
Smith versus Bunting
Michael Smith also qualified for the semi-finals of the World Cup. The winner of the Grand Slam of Darts defeated Stephen Bunting 5-3. Smith seemed to be heading for an easy win with a 4-1 lead, but Bunting was certainly not much less than Bully Boy. The big difference, however, was made on the doubles. For a long time, Smith’s finish percentage was above fifty percent. In the end, Smith finished on 47 percent on his doubles while Bunting was on 24 percent on finish percentage. That turned out to be the big difference.
Clemens versus Price
The 39-year-old Clemens already made history when he reached the quarter-finals in front of hundreds of German fans at Alexandra Palace at the expense of Alan Soutar. Never before has a German reached the last eight at a World Cup darts. Clemens recovered from a bad first set against Price (3-0 loss), as he only allowed the Welshman four more legs. Even when Price caused a sensation by appearing on stage with headphones at the beginning of the fifth set – he was annoyed by the audience’s booing – Clemens remained unperturbed.
Van Gerwen versus Dobey
Mighty Mike posted at least one break in each set and only allowed Dobey three legs in the entire match. The match never became a battle and Van Gerwen quickly headed for the semi-final without having to show his best level. Just like in his previous matches at this World Cup, he reached a three arrow average of over a hundred: 102.00 this time. His throwout percentage (38.46%) could be better, but with an opponent who only got to 21.43%, he wasn’t really challenged either.