2019-20 PDC World Darts Championship – Michael van Gerwen vs Nathan Aspinall Preview & Prediction

THE FACTS

When is Michael van Gerwen vs Nathan Aspinall taking place? Monday 30th December, 2019 – evening

Where is Michael van Gerwen vs Nathan Aspinall taking place? Alexandra Palace, London

What channel is Michael van Gerwen vs Nathan Aspinall on? Sky Sports Darts

Where can I stream Michael van Gerwen vs Nathan Aspinall? Sky Sports subscribers can stream the match online via Sky Go

Where can I get tickets for Michael van Gerwen vs Nathan Aspinall? https://www.pdc.tv/william-hill-world-darts-championship-tickets

What was the outcome in the last meeting? Nathan Aspinall beat Michael van Gerwen 6-3

THE PLAYERS

MICHAEL VAN GERWEN

• Michael van Gerwen produced a patchy performance but still averaged 99.5 in defeating Darius Labanauskas 5-2 to reach the semi-finals at the PDC World Championship for the seventh time in eight years.
• Van Gerwen lost the opening set against Labanauskas and could have been 2-0 down with his opponent missing a dart to win the second set. Thereafter, the world number one was always in control.
• His 99.5 average in the quarter-finals means he has averaged under 100 in three of his four matches at the 2019-20 PDC World Championship. Prior to the start of the tournament, he had averaged over 100 in 19 consecutive World Championship matches.

NATHAN ASPINALL

• Nathan Aspinall was made to work for his win in the quarter-finals against Dimitri Van den Bergh when his Belgian opponent fought back from 4-1 down to trail 4-3 and was one leg away from squaring the match only for Aspinall to win three consecutive legs to get over the line
• Aspinall posted a tally of 11 180s against Van den Bergh – increasing his tournament total to 35 in four matches. Last year, he hit 26 maximums in five matches prior to the semi-finals.
• The Asp has tasted success against Van Gerwen in two of their three previous meetings in 2019. All three matches were played in a stage environment on the Euro Tour, though with a shorter format of the best-of-11 legs.

THE PREDICTION

Defending champion Michael van Gerwen has only shown flashes of his brilliance during the tournament so far but he still has the highest tournament average. The dominant Dutchman likes to be tested to the limit and he is likely to be pushed hard here against the very capable Nathan Aspinall, who has reached the semi-finals here for the second year in a row. Aspinall has a major tournament win under his belt in 2019 and has beaten Van Gerwen twice this year so will not fear the challenge ahead. The fact cannot be denied though, that Van Gerwen’s winning record and undoubted ability is far above any current player and if he rises to the occasion, he should be too strong for the challenger. Whilst Van Gerwen might win, Aspinall is certainly worth looking at on the handicap (+3.5 sets).