World Matchplay

The 30th edition of the World Matchplay was held from 15 to 23 July in the Empress Ballroom of the Winter Gardens in Blackpool. Nathan Aspinall was crowned winner of the tournament for the first time after a convincing victory over Jonny Clayton in the final.

In the first round we immediately see a few surprises: title holder Michael van Gerwen loses 10-7 to Brendan Dolan. Outsider Josh Rock goes down 10-5 against Damon Heta, while former winner James Wade loses 10-8 to Chris Dobey after a close match. Nathan Aspinall wins his first game 10-7 against Krzysztof Ratajski.

Raymond van Barneveld returns to Blackpool for the first time in five years, but cannot get past Ryan Searle in the first round: the Englishman throws an average of 105.19 and beats 'Barney' 10-4. Dirk van Duijvenbode needs a tie-break against Kim Huybrechts to continue, after the Belgian missed a match dart (12-10). Danny Noppert struggles against Martin Schindler, but takes a 10-8 win.

In the second round, the tournament again loses a couple of favorites. World number 1 Michael Smith loses 11-7 to Chris Dobey, while second seed Peter Wright loses 11-8 to Ryan Searle. The number 4 on the list, Gerwyn Price, also cannot survive the last sixteen: he loses to Joe Cullen after an exciting match (13-11).

The two remaining Dutchmen also lose in the second round: Danny Noppert often played against Nathan Aspinall in 2023 and this time he has to acknowledge his superior in the Englishman: 11-9. Dirk van Duijvenbode plays another exciting match, but eventually loses 14-12 to Luke Humphries.

The playing field is wide open from the quarterfinals: there is no big favorite for the title anymore. This offers opportunities to the 'outsiders'. Nathan Aspinall and Chris Dobey make it an exciting fight, but it is Aspinall who manages to win 16-12. With the same numbers, Jonny Clayton manages to deal with Ryan Searle, after a match that had an unprecedented high level at the start.

Joe Cullen also manages to qualify for the last four. He beats Daryl Gurney 16-11. The most exciting match is between Luke Humphries and Damon Heta. The Australian almost manages to fight back from a big deficit, but in the end it is Humphries who wins 16-13.

Three Englishmen and a Welshman can dream of the title. The first semi-final is between Nathan Aspinall and Joe Cullen. Cullen has been throwing a good level throughout the tournament, but doesn’t play very well in the semi-final against Aspinall. 'The Asp' throws a good game and takes the first ticket for the final with a 17-9 victory. His opponent in the final comes from the match between Jonny Clayton and Luke Humphries. It will be a game in which Humphries is always in the lead, but Clayton just can't stop fighting. In the end, 'The Ferret' still manages to go through and win this exciting match 17-15.

So the finalists are Nathan Aspinall and Jonny Clayton. Both men know what it's like to play and win grand finals. But from the start of the game it is clear that Aspinall is the better one. After ten legs the score is still 5-5, but then the Englishman manages to set up an incredible serie of eleven winning legs in a row. He throws a 108 finish twice in the game, a 110 finish, a 115 finish and also a 170 finish. The final is then quickly decided and with the clear figures of 18-6 Nathan Aspinall crowns himself the winner of the World Matchplay 2023.