96 darters will descend on Alexandra Palace this week to try and secure the biggest prize in the darting world - but it will be a tournament like no other due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The 2021 World Darts Championship will have fans for just one night as London will enter Tier 3 restrictions at one minute past midnight on Wednesday, which seemingly means that there will be no crowd at all for the rest of the tournament.
Things could change of course, but after the opening night Ally Pally is going to have a different look and feel to it, and it means that like the World Matchplay and the Grand Slam of Darts that were also behind closed doors, the big guns could falter on their path to glory.
Lets take a look at each quarter and examine the tests the big guns face on their road to success, in what may be the most competitive field of darts players yet in one tournament.
FIRST QUARTER
(1) Michael van Gerwen v Ryan Murray/Lourence Ilagan
(32) Ricky Evans v Mickey Mansell/Haupai Puha
(16) Joe Cullen v Wayne Jones/Ciaran Teehan
(17) Jonny Clayton v John Henderson/Marko Kantele
(8) Dave Chisnall v Keegan Brown/Ryan Meikle
(25) Danny Noppert v Martijn Kleermaker/Cameron Carolissen
(9) Dimitri Van den Bergh v Luke Humphries/Paul Lim
(24) Jermaine Wattimena v Derk Telnekes/Nick Kenny
Mighty Mike is looking for a fourth World Championship to add to his resume, and he has to better current champion Peter Wright's finish at this tournament to stay as the world number one.
Since winning the UK Open back in March, van Gerwen went through a bit of a lull in winning tournaments, as he seemingly couldn't get fully to grips with the new behind closed doors environment he was playing in.
But he finally put that all to bed in the Players Championship Finals last month, dispatching of old rival Mervyn King 11-10 in the final - a perfect preparation for the tournament he wants to win the most.
His opening encounter is not easy at all though, as he has to come up against either the extravagant Filipino Lourence Ilagan or Ryan Murray, who has had a solid year on the Pro Tour after gaining his Tour Card for the first time (Murray is the man that Van Gerwen hit two nine-darters in one match against in 2017).
MVG should really get past Ilagan or Murray, and you'd expect he'd have no problems with beating Ricky Evans, Mickey Mansell or New Zealander Haupai Puha, trickier clashes could surface against either Joe Cullen or Jonny Clayton.
Cullen was firing in big performances with his new Winmau darts not too long ago, winning the final day of the Winter Series but then crashed out of the Grand Slam of Darts after bungling a crucial leg against van Gerwen.
And in Clayton you get a solid, consistent chucker who has defeated van Gerwen before, but in set play the Green Machine should possess too much quality if he's on-song.
The bottom half of the quarter looks a bit more complicated, with Dave Chisnall being the top seed. Chizzy's form has been all over the place this year and his throwing action seems to involve a lot more shoulder than normal, something which needs to be ironed out if he wants to be a serious contender to win the big one.
That is why it's worth looking elsewhere to find who probably faces van Gerwen in the quarter final. Luke Humphries is a big-stage player having reached back-to-back Ally Pally last eight finishes, but he has to see off the wily veteran Paul Lim first.
The quick-throwing Jermaine Wattimena is a danger when he's firing, and there could be an all-Dutch affair in the last 64 between Danny Noppert and Martijn Kleermaker, the latter of who has made a solid start to his PDC career this year.
But after securing his first major by defeating Gary Anderson at the World Matchplay, Dimitri van den Bergh is the man to take down in this particular section.
For someone who's had poor results in events where fans aren't permitted, 'DreamMaker' Dimitri looked right at home when winning in Milton Keynes, and a run to the semi final at the Grand Slam showed that the Belgian was here to stay with the big guns.
He's not the finished article by a long way, but my guess is that it will be a van Gerwen v van den Bergh quarter final, with MVG just coming out on top.
Prediction: Michael van Gerwen to win the quarter (4/6)
SECOND QUARTER
(4) Michael Smith v Jason Lowe/Dimitri Gorbunov
(29) Devon Petersen v Steve Lennon/Daniel Larsson
(13) Gary Anderson v Madars Razma/Toru Suzuki
(20) Mensur Suljovic v Maik Kuivenhoven/Matt Edgar
(5) Rob Cross v Dirk Van Duijvenbode/Bradley Brooks
(28) Jamie Hughes v Adam Hunt/Lisa Ashton
(12) Glen Durrant v Steve Beaton/Diogo Portela
(21) Adrian Lewis v Damon Heta/Danny Baggish
Out of all the quarters, this is the one where I'd most expect a 'surprise' semi finalist.
Michael Smith is the highest-ranked seed in this group, and he ended a two-year wait for a ranked title by picking up back-to-back floor events in the Winter Series in November.
That may have eased some of the pressure off his back, but even though he won every game of the group phase of the Grand Slam, he crashed out at the quarter final stage to eventual winner Jose De Sousa.
Missed doubles were an issue once again in that match, and that is generally his issue considering he's one of the best scorers and 180-hitters in the entire world.
You'd expect Jason Lowe to get through his opener with Russian debutant Dimitri Gorbunov and provide a stern test for Smith, but we all want to see a battle of the biggest 180 hitters in the last 32 between Smith and Devon Peterson.
The African Warrior has found a new lease of life in 2020 having switched from Unicorn to Trinidad barrels, and it seems to have done the trick as he won his maiden PDC title on the European Tour, and reached the semi final of the European Championship.
Gary Anderson and Mensur Suljovic are both in the top half of the second quarter, and both veterans have had their issues in 2020. The Flying Scotsman has been suffering with a knee injury for over a month and only time will tell as to whether he has gotten over the issue in time for this event.
Mensur meanwhile has struggled to make an impact in this calendar year, and missed the Players Championship Finals due to a family bereavement. You have to feel he's vulnerable here to an early elimination, although he could've had a more difficult first game than the winner of Maik Kuivenhoven and Matthew Edgar.
The bottom half of this quarter is where it gets interesting. Rob Cross has been blowing hot and cold this year, and he's been playing at a far lesser standard to his opening two years on the PDC tour.
If there was one of a few players he didn't want for his first game, it would've been Dirk van Duijvenbode, and unfortunately that's who he will face if the 'Aubergenius' gets past Youth Champion Bradley Brooks.
Van Duijvenbode has been the most improved player on the tour this year, getting to the World Grand Prix final and he didn't do a lot wrong in the Players Championship Finals, where his 103 average succumbed to van Gerwen's 110 in a 10-5 loss.
As for the rest of the contenders, Jamie Hughes is capable of chucking in a big performance, and Lisa Ashton will be looking to fly the flag for the ladies but faces a stiff first test against Adam Hunt.
It gets even more interesting as Premier League champion Glen Durrant, who has suffered both with COVID and his performances in recent months, will have to face either the evergreen Steve Beaton or Diogo Portela in the last 64, neither of whom will give Duzza a comfy experience on the stage.
And a man who has been on the downward spiral for a while now is two-time world champion Adrian Lewis, who couldn't have asked for a worse first game as he takes on the winner of Damon Heta and talented American Danny Baggish.
Baggish was impressive in defeat to Nathan Aspinall last year, but one of the stars of this year has been Heta, who confirmed his obvious talent last summer by eclipsing an all-star field to win the 2019 Brisbane Masters, defeating Cross in the final.
After securing his Tour Card at Q-School in January, the Aussie has gone from strength-to-strength, winning his first ranked event in the Autumn Series and then reaching the quarter finals of both the Grand Slam and Players Championship Finals - the latter of which should've really been at least the semi's.
And because of his strong recent form, I fancy Heta to topple everyone in this section, probably against Smith in the last eight.
Prediction: Damon Heta to win the quarter (10/1)
THIRD QUARTER
(2) Peter Wright v Steve West/Amit Gilitwala
(31) Gabriel Clemens v Andy Hamilton/Nico Kurz
(15) Krzysztof Ratajski v Ryan Joyce/Karel Sedlacek
(18) Simon Whitlock v Darius Labanauskas/Chengan Liu
(7) James Wade v Callan Rydz/James Bailey
(26) Stephen Bunting v Andy Boulton/Deta Hedman
(10) Ian White v Kim Huybrechts/Di Zhuang
(23) Jeffrey de Zwaan v Ryan Searle/Danny Lauby
There's no easy draw at the World Championship, but Peter Wright is going to have to pull everything he has out of the bag to get past his potential set of opponents.
Snakebite showed incredible bottle to put away Noel Malicdem in his first game last year, and then he grew stronger throughout the tournament and eventually defeated his nemesis van Gerwen for a first world title.
His defence of the trophy will probably start with Steve West, and then one of Gabriel Clemens, Andy Hamilton or Nico Kurz will await.
Hamilton is on a bit of a career resurgence after falling out of the PDC system in recent times, and whilst he'll never likely reach a world final again, he will be hopeful of defeating the youngster Kurz, who lit up Ally Pally last year by defeating James Wilson and Joe Cullen.
He was one dart away from the nine-darter against Wilson before putting him away, and he eventually bowed out in a thrilling game against eventual quarter finalist Humphries - Kurz will be hoping for a similar run here.
Fellow German Clemens will no doubt have something to say about that though, and if he's the one that faces Wright in the last 32, it could end up being the match of the round if he shows the form he did on day three of the Winter Series last month, where he threw three monstrous averages.
The section gets even tougher with Polish sensation Krzysztof Ratajski having to take on Ryan Joyce or 'Evil Charlie' Karel Sedlacek in his first match.
Joyce took out Wright at the World Grand Prix back in October and is a match for anyone on his day, whilst Sedlacek had his best run at a PDC event at the Players Championship Finals by reaching the last 16.
Ratajski has hit a bit of a lull in form in recent tournaments but on his day is one of the best players in the world, so he's another one that Wright may have to worry about down the line.
And let's not forget about Simon Whitlock, who has undergone a complete resurgence in 2020. The Aussie has defeated van Gerwen at both the Matchplay, the Grand Prix AND the Grand Slam, but failed to capitalise on all of those results by losing his next games in each competition.
In the form he's in right now, Whitlock would be expected to get past Darius Labanauskas, but after that it's anyones guess who makes it out of the first half of the quarter.
As for the bottom half, we could be in for a new quarter finalist if James Wade performs how he did last year.
The Machine was sunk by Steve Beaton in his first game, but he's revitalised himself this year, winning floor tournaments and reaching the finals of major events, without taking home the winners prize.
If Callan Rydz gets through his opening encounter against Australian thrower James Bailey, then he could really push Wade to his limit on the basis of what we saw the Geordie do against Peter Wright at the Players Championship Finals.
Rydz took Snakebite to a last-leg decider in that last 16 game, and the youngster has gone from strength-to-strength since winning his two-year Tour Card.
Deta Hedman will also make her Ally Pally bow, but faces a tough test against Andy Boulton who has found some good form in recent months, and the winner of that will take on the experienced Stephen Bunting, who has had some battles on the world stage in recent years.
Further down the quarter, Ian White will be hoping to banish his stage hoodoo, as the 10th seed will probably take on Kim Huybrechts in his opening match.
White is normally a bet to mop up floor tournaments but it's been the same old story on the stage in 2020, with opening round defeats in the Matchplay, the Grand Prix and he was sunk in the second round of the Grand Slam by Wade.
But there may be a case for either Jeffrey De Zwaan or Ryan Searle to get all the way to the last four here. They will face each other in the last 64 if Searle can defeat American youngster Danny Lauby, and both are very capable of hitting consistent 100+ averages on the big stage.
De Zwaan was involved in one of the games of the tournament last year with Dave Chisnall before being defeated by Peter Wright, whilst Searle gave Gary Anderson a real fright in the last 32. I could potentially see the winner of that match going on to face either Wright or Whitlock in the last eight.
Prediction: Peter Wright to win the quarter (13/8), but Ryan Searle (25/1) is also worth considering
FOURTH QUARTER
(3) Gerwyn Price v Luke Woodhouse/Jamie Lewis
(30) Brendan Dolan v Mike De Decker/Edward Foulkes
(14) Jose de Sousa v Ross Smith/David Evans
(19) Mervyn King v Max Hopp/Gordon Mathers
(6) Nathan Aspinall v Scott Waites/Matt Campbell
(27) Vincent van der Voort v Ron Meulenkamp/Boris Krcmar
(11) Daryl Gurney v William O'Connor/Neils Zonneveld
(22) Chris Dobey v Jeff Smith/Keane Barry
The final quarter sees the entrance of the most polarising man in all of darts in Gerwyn Price, and unlike the world champion Wright, the Iceman seems to have got himself a favourable first few games.
The Welshman will face the winner of Luke Woodhouse and Jamie Lewis in his first match, neither of whom have shown their greatest form this year but have both secured big results at Ally Pally in the past - Lewis of course had that run to the semi finals three years ago before being stopped by Phil Taylor in his final year.
Price would then come up against one of Brendan Dolan, Mike De Decker or Japanese debutant Edward Foulkes, and none of them should really get close to Price's best game, although Dolan has hit some big numbers in 2020.
Then it gets potentially tougher in the next season. This is where the PDC's newest major winner - Jose De Sousa - comes into the mix, having taken the Grand Slam of Darts last month in stunning circumstances with a 158 checkout against James Wade.
The Special One faces a tough first game against the in-form Ross Smith or Challenge Tour winner David Evans, and then probably Mervyn King or Max Hopp in the last 32, the former of whom reached his first major ranked final since 2012 at the Players Championship Finals, losing to van Gerwen in a pulsating game.
This all means that we could see a Price v De Sousa last 16 tie, which would throw up some incredible numbers - and not just because of Jose's unique counting - and if there's no crowd there to see it, then Price may not be fired-up as usual which may just about give the advantage to the Portuguese maestro.
And the bottom half of the quarter could throw up some potentially interesting ties as a host of names who have struggled for form this year enter the frame.
Nathan Aspinall was the runner-up in this years Premier League Darts, but second round exits in both the European Championship and Players Championship Finals will be a cause for concern for the Stockport chucker - his saving grace is that he seems to come to life at Ally Pally with back-to-back semi final finishes.
It could end up being Aspinall against Price once again on the big stage in the last eight, with the Asp defeating the Iceman at this venue in 2018 and similarly he took him out at the Grand Slam just a few weeks ago in the last 16.
His opening game against either Scott Waites or Matt Campbell is no easy one though, especially as the former took him all the way in the first round of the Players Championship Finals.
The remaining seeds of Vincent van der Voort, Daryl Gurney and Chris Dobey have all shown either inconsistent or poor form this year, and they could all be there for the taking.
Boris Krcmar could end up facing van der Voort in a battle of the giants in the last 64, and judging on the Croat's 6-5 loss to Michael Smith last month with a 107 average, he could be one of the surprise packages of the tournament in a very open section of the draw.
Gurney meanwhile has struggled throughout the year and a Northern Ireland v Republic of Ireland battle could occur in his first game if Willie O'Connor gets past Niels Zonneveld, and if that happens then O'Connor would be no doubt delighted to go up against an out-of-sorts Superchin.
Then there is Dobey, who got to the last 16 of the UK Open all the way back in March but since then is another top player who has struggled, and faces a horrible first match against either Jeff Smith or perhaps the best teenage darts player in the world in Keane Barry.
The 18-year-old Irish wonderkid has secured a two-year Tour Card starting in 2021 and will be hoping to get his professional career off to a great start against his Canadian opponent, who himself has delivered some stellar performances in his first year on the tour.
Prediction: Jose De Sousa to win the quarter (9/2)
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