We’re down to the final four of the 2021 PDC World Matchplay, as the tournament enters the semi-finals on Saturday, July 24. Betting-Previews.com brings you full coverage of today’s action, where we take a look at the first two semi-finals bouts featuring Dimitri van den Bergh, Krzysztof Ratajski, Peter Wright, and Michael van Gerwen.
2021 PDC World Matchplay – Day 7 Recap
Peter Wright made easy work of Michael Smith yesterday, with a clean 16-7 victory, with Michael van Gerwen the following suit with a straight-forward 16-9 victory against Nathan Aspinall. As we look ahead, all the eyes will be on Wright, who is playing like the best player at the tournament, and van den Bergh, who has shown strong form as the defending champion.
Although both impressed with their showings, it’s Ratajski who has caught everyone’s attention, having reached his first major PDC semi-finals and is now only two steps away from lifting the prestigious Phil Taylor Trophy.
van den Bergh D. – Ratajski K.
Saturday, July 24 – 19:10 BST
Dimitri van den Bergh met with Krzysztof Ratajski seven times and won four meetings; however, the Polish Eagle has won the last three with 6-3, 6-4, and 8-7. It’s also worth noting that all of van den Bergh’s victories were 6-5.
Both players have been performing well in this tournament. Van den Bergh is averaging 100.5 on the tournament, with a 34.5% checkout average, while Ratajski managed a 99.1 tournament average with a checkout rate of 42%. What’s more, the Pole has hit 17 180s.
Not only are their tournament averages are very close – so are their seasonal averages, with 90 for van den Bergh and 97.8 for Ratajski. The win rate percentage shows 63% and 60%, respectively.
Despite all that, van den Bergh enters this match as a 1.40 (Bet365) favourite, which seems a bit low considering the relative performance these two have been showing at the tournament. Nor does it explain their head-to-head record.
Van den Bergh has the experience on his side and is known for performing well on the big stage. When he gets into the zone, van den Bergh is tough to beat, and there are many players who have experienced that before.
Similarly, Ratajski is a very focused player, capable of getting into “the zone”; however, unlike van den Bergh, he doesn’t need to have a towel to do so. He could likely crumble under the pressure of playing the biggest match of his life, but the betting odds are just too good to pass on, considering what we have seen from Van den Bergh and Ratajski this week.
Prediction: Krzysztof Ratajski to win – 3.00 at Bet365, Unibet, Betway
Wright P. – van Gerwen M.
Saturday, July 24 – 20:40 BST
Peter Wright knows Michael van Gerwen all too well, but his memories aren’t too great. For a very long time Weight would consistently underperform against van Gerwen and while he would steal a win here and there, it extremely rarely happened in big matches.
However, times have changed, and MVG is no longer the same powerhouse as he was back in 2016. His win rate on the season has been declining every year since and eventually led to van Gerwen losing against Wright in the 2020 World Championship finals.
Van Gerwen still leads Wright 64-21 in the head-to-head; however, since the 2020 World Championship, the H2H shows only 5-3 in favour of MVG. It’s also worth mentioning that Wright won their last meeting at the start of July with 8-2.
If we take a look at their tournament stats, Wright is averaging the tournament’s highest 101.7 and a 45% checking out rate. What’s more, Wright has hit 19 180s. Van Gerwen has been averaging only 96.8 with a 40% check out rate and 12 180s.
The H2H would suggest one thing, but based on what we have seen from the Snakebite and MVG at the tournament, it’s hard to pass on Wright at 1.89.
Prediction: Peter Wright to win – 1.89 at Matchbook, 1.85 at Pinnacle
We return tomorrow with our betting preview and predictions for the 2021 PDC World Matchplay finals match, so don’t forget to check back. Meanwhile, check out our 2020 Tokyo Olympics football previews, which you can find posted for free on our website.
