On-song Simon Whitlock believes the start of one of the biggest tournaments in world darts has come at the perfect time as he aims to continue his red-hot July form.
Australian ace Whitlock is one of 32 players heading to the Winter Gardens at Blackpool for the start of the week-long World Matchplay, which gets underway on Saturday night.
Already this month, world number five Whitlock has reached the final of the European Championships and won the Shetland Masters event by seeing off a field which included Michael van Gerwen, James Wade, Raymond van Barneveld and Adrian Lewis.
Now the 44-year-old is hoping to carry that form into one of the stand-out events on the darting calendar.
“The World Matchplay is a massive tournament and right up there with the World Championships and Premier League,” said the Australian, who now lives in Waterlooville and was a semi-finalist at Blackpool in 2010.
“I couldn’t be happier at the moment. My form is good, I’m recording good averages and getting the right results a lot of the time.
“The venue and the crowds are always first-class at Blackpool so it should be a brilliant week.”
Whitlock will have an early taste of the Winter Gardens after being scheduled to play his first round match against Jelle Klaasen on the opening night.
And he admitted the rapid-fire Dutchman will represent a stern challenge.
“Jelle is playing exceptionally well at the moment and reached the quarter-finals of the European Championship last week,” added Whitlock.
“But, with the standard as it is at the moment, every match is going to be a tough one when you’ve got the 32 best players in the world in the field.
“You just have to focus on getting you own performance right and that’s what I will be concentrating on between now and Saturday.”
Whitlock’s match is the last on stage on the opening night, with the entire tournament broadcast live on Sky Sports.
Article courtesy of Leyland Paints