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BDO World Championship Day Seven schedule, preview and predictions: Williams and Hogan collide as Greaves faces Suzuki

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By Ben Hudd
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The business end of the BDO World Championship beckons. We’re now just two days after from our champions being crowned.

A blistering Paul Hogan and Jim Williams contest a thrilling men’s quarter-final, as do world champions Scott Mitchell and Scott Waites, while 16-year-old Beau Greaves will be bidding to bring to an end Mikuru Suzuki’s unbeaten World Championship exploits.

The action gets underway from 1pm at the O2 entertainment complex in London, with two women’s semi-finals and two men’s quarter-finals taking place across the day.

WAYNE WARREN VS CHRIS LANDMAN

Both Wayne Warren and Chris Landman have gone thoroughly under the radar en route to the quarter-finals – in Landman’s case the furthest he’s been in a World Championship.

Landman handed Dave Parletti a major blow in the second round, before battling past a determined debutant in Ben Hazel, while Warren reached his second World Championship quarter-final with victories over Australia’s Justin Thompson and former World Championship finalist Andy Hamilton.

The pair have met four times in BDO competition, with proceedings being all square at two-a-piece, though, Wales’ Warren reigned supreme in their most recent and most notable clash – which arrived at the Finder Darts Masters just over a year ago.

Prediction: 5-3 Warren

LISA ASHTON VS CORRINE HAMMOND

In a repeat of the 2017 World Championship final, Lisa Ashton and Corrine Hammond face off once again on the biggest stage of them all, with Ashton the heavy favourite on current form.

Both Hammond and Ashton have held a tournament average of below the 80 mark, with neither player having dropped a set so far in London.

Hammond has all but breezed past both Vicky Pruim and Laura Turner, amid squandering 49 darts at the outer ring in her opening two matches.

If it wasn’t for missed opportunities from both Turner and Lorraine Winstanley in the quarter-finals, we could be laying eyes on a completely opposing match-up.

Finishing has proved to be the vulnerable weakness for virtually all of the ladies thus far at the O2, though, Ashton’s has probably been the pick of the bunch, alongside 16-year-old Beau Greaves.

Prediction: 2-0 Ashton

MARIO VANDENBOGARDE VS DAVID EVANS

Mario Vandenbogarde has been one of the most persistent performers on the BDO circuit during the last two years or so. The Belgian has now brought that consistency into both the World Masters and the World Championship.

His calm, composed nature when taking upon the oche has brought him along way, and that route could well continue – perhaps even remain, and crown the Belgian world champion on Sunday evening.

Both Poland’s Sebastian Steyer and the Netherlands’ Dennie Olde Kalter have held valiant efforts against Vandenbogarde, however, both have been ousted in the same rather emphatic fashion.

‘Super Mario’ produced virtually an identical level of performance three months ago at the World Masters – where he embarked on a run to the semi-finals. He unfortunately fell short on that occasion, with many tipping him to lift the prestigious crown, though, his on-stage presence and collectedness does not seem like faltering this time around.

Vandenbogarde will ideally be wanting to up the ante against a determined debutant in David Evans, with the Manchester man producing a superb showing in toppling the second seed Richard Veenstra.

Evans averaged over 95 in a 4-2 victory over the Dutchman, though, Vandenbogarde will arguably be a slightly tougher test for him on current form.

Prediction: 5-4 Vandenbogarde

JIM WILLIAMS VS PAUL HOGAN

Many onlookers are considering this quarter-final encounter between Jim Williams and Paul Hogan a title decider.

Hogan has played significantly better than his Welsh opponent, and anyone else in this tournament thus far. 

The Dudley-born thrower has been simply remarkable since denying Brian Raman in the first round, averaging around the 100 mark in impressive victories over Adam Smith-Neale and Martijn Kleermaker – both of whom lifted BDO-ranked titles last year.

‘Crocodile Dundee’ was millimetres away from pinning the first BDO World Championship nine-darter for 30 years on Tuesday whilst completing an onslaught against Smith-Neale.

As for Williams, he has remained a heavy favourite to lift the prestigious crown throughout the tournament. The Welshman has not produced anything near his brilliant best during this week in London, although, remains within a shout of a second major honour.

The World Trophy champion was very nearly defeated at his opening hurdle against Gary Stone, though, missed opportunities from the Scotsman proved costly. Subsequently, Williams raised the ante in averaging just under 95 in whitewashing Scotland’s Ryan Hogarth.

Williams has in his two previous World Championship appearances been ousted by eventual champion Glen Durrant, and with ‘Duzza’ having switched to the professional side of the sport, the Welshman will be vying to lift the crown on Sunday.

If Hogan was to reign victorious on Friday evening, he would be expected to therefore progress and lift the trophy himself.

Prediction: 5-3 Hogan

BEAU GREAVES VS MIKURU SUZUKI

It was a dream birthday for Beau Greaves on Thursday afternoon, as she defeated Aileen de Graaf and prevailed to the semi-finals of the Women’s World Championship on debut, becoming the youngest ever to do so.

Greaves, who turned 16 on same day as her quarter-final triumph, has been simply scintillating on debut at the O2, averaging over 80 in both of her opening matches.

The Doncaster-based ace recorded the highest average of the tournament, 86.28, in a 2-1 victory over de Graaf, with her finishing being phenomenal throughout.

She will take on the defending champion Mikuru Suzuki, with her opponent vying to reinstate the prestigious trophy on Japanese soil, and become the fourth women to lift back-to-back world titles.

Suzuki has been nowhere near her foremost form thus far in London, though, she has not endured many frights in comfortably seeing off both Maria O’Brien and Anastasia Dobromyslova.

Dobromyslova squandered opportunities aplenty against the reigning world champion. Suzuki punished those mistakes from the Russian in order to remain unbeaten in the World Championship.

Prediction: 2-1 Greaves

SCOTT WAITES VS SCOTT MITCHELL

Having first clashed over 11 years ago in the final of the Swedish Classic, Scott Mitchell and Scott Waites, both of whom have lifted the prestigious world title, lock horns once again with a semi-final place on the line.

The BDO titans have surprisingly never met in a major prior to Friday evening, with their six meetings across the past 12 years being shared equally.

Mitchell played the pantomime villain role in the second round as he fought past the valiant 14-year-old debutant Leighton Bennett, before easing to a whitewash victory over last year’s semi-finalist Michael Unterbuchner of Germany.

After performing to a below-par standard against Bennett, Mitchell returned to his usual 90-plus stuff, recording a 92.58 average in thrashing Unterbuchner.

Mitchell will be looking to reach the last four for the first time since lifting the prestigious crown five years ago, while Waites will be hoping to make the semi-finals for the third successive year, with Glen Durrant not around to defeat him on this particular occasion.

Waites has been far from his best, clocking averages below the 90 mark in both of his previous matches, though, the Halifax man remains in the tournament, and remains with a chance of claiming a third World Championship title.

Prediction: 5-3 Mitchell

BDO WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP

FRIDAY JANUARY 10

AFTERNOON SESSION

Wayne Warren vs Chris Landman (Men’s QF)
Lisa Ashton vs Corinne Hammond (Women’s SF)
Mario Vandenbogaerde vs David Evans (Men’s QF)

EVENING SESSION

Jim Williams vs Paul Hogan (Men’s QF)
Mikuru Suzuki vs Beau Greaves (Women’s SF)
Scott Waites vs Scott Mitchell (Men’s QF)

Photography by Chris Sargeant/TipTopPics

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About The Author

Ben Hudd Ben is a dedicated sports writer and aspiring sports journalist, covering all aspects of darts for the ever-growing Darts Planet TV. He has a passion for sport, particularly darts, cricket and football.

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