Krzysztof Ratajski Wins Players Championship In Barnsley
The Players Championship (22) took place in Barnsley last Sunday, where the event was taken down by Poland’s Krzysztof Ratajski. To clinch the victory, Ratajski beat two-time world champion Adrian ‘Jackpot’ Lewis 6-4 in the final. The win came after sweeping his matches on Saturday. On Sunday, Ratajski upped his game considerably on Sunday as he faced tougher competition than he came across one day earlier.
On Sunday, his 6-4 win over Daryl Gurney was followed by a 6-4 quarter-final victory at the expense of Michael Smith before inflicting defeat by the same scoreline on Kyle Anderson in the semis. In contrast, his opponents on the Saturday were Cameron Menzies, Zoran Lerchbacher and Terry Temple.
In the final, both players held throw for the initial four sets before Jackpot provided the slip that would let the Pole in. As Lewis missed three darts at double top that would have otherwise given him a break of throw, Ratajski moved in for the kill, punishing the sloppy Potter by landing his own double 16. From here, Lewis took out 97 for the following set only to see his opponent hit double 16 once more to go 4-3 ahead. Lewis leveled immediately after Ratajski landed his favourite double 16 to move within a leg of victory, before hitting the same double to clinch the title.
2018 European Championship Darts betting tips
This October 25 through 28, the Darts European Championship will take place at Dortmund’s Westfalenhalle in Germany. This means that four-time defending champion Michael van Gerwen will head up a 32-player field that also includes Mensur Suljovic, Peter Wright, Rob Cross, Michael Smith, Dave Chisnall and Daryl Gurney. Gary Anderson is the notable absentee after he opted against competing in this year’s European Tour.
The 11th staging of the event will be televised live on ITV 4 and, again, Mighty Mike will be the red hot favourite to win it for what will be the fifth time in a row. Betway’s price on the imperial Dutchman and world number one to come away with the title is 4/5. The same online bookmaker values Mensur Suljovic at 15/2, while Peter Wright has a best price of 9/1 on his head.
For those that fancy Rob Cross, you can pick up the 12’s on his head or go further down the line and opt for Michael ‘Bully Boy’ Smith and jump on the 18/1 price Betway is offering. Daryl Gurney is available at 22/1, James Wade 25/1 and Adrian Lewis 33/1, but I personally wouldn’t look past the top two favourites here. Let’s select either MVG as the obvious inevitable winner or Gentle Mensur to make things a little bit more interesting.
European Championship: draw & tournament bracket
Thursday October 25: First Round (Best of 11 legs)
- Michael van Gerwen v (32) Paul Nicholson
- (16) Steve West v (17) Mervyn King
- (8) Simon Whitlock v (25) Steve Beaton
- (9) Peter Wright v (24) Jermaine Wattimena
- (5) Joe Cullen v (28) Jelle Klaasen
- (12) Michael Smith v (21) Steve Lennon
- (4) Ian White v (29) Richard North
- (13) Rob Cross v (20) Danny Noppert
- Mensur Suljovic v (31) Cristo Reyes
- (15) Darren Webster v (18) Stephen Bunting
- (7) Max Hopp v (26) William O’Connor
- (10) Jonny Clayton v (23) James Wilson
- (6) James Wade v (27) Martin Schindler
- (11) Daryl Gurney v (22) Ricky Evans
- Gerwyn Price v (30) Kyle Anderson
- (14) Adrian Lewis v (19) Dave Chisnall
- Steve West v Mervyn King
- Ian White v Richard North
- Simon Whitlock v Steve Beaton
- Michael Smith v Steve Lennon
- Joe Cullen v Jelle Klaasen
- Michael van Gerwen v Paul Nicholson
- Rob Cross v Danny Noppert
- Peter Wright v Jermaine Wattimena
Friday October 26: Second Round (Best of 19 legs)
- Jonny Clayton v James Wilson
- Darren Webster v Stephen Bunting
- Gerwyn Price v Kyle Anderson
- Mensur Suljovic v Cristo Reyes
- Daryl Gurney v Ricky Evans
- Max Hopp v William O’Connor
- James Wade v Martin Schindler
- Adrian Lewis v Dave Chisnall
- Cullen/Klaasen v Smith/Lennon
- Whitlock/Beaton v Wright/Wattimena
- White/North v Cross/Noppert
- Van Gerwen/Nicholson v West/King
Saturday October 27
- Price/Anderson v Lewis/Chisnall
- Suljovic/Reyes v Webster/Bunting
- Wade/Schindler v Gurney/Evans
- Hopp/O’Connor v Clayton/Wilson
Sunday October 28
- Quarter-Finals (Best of 19 legs)
- Semi-Finals (Best of 21 legs)
- Final (Best of 21 legs)