Gerwyn Price faces Ross Smith on Friday evening in Blackpool with a very clear aim: to inject some intensity back into his game just as the World Matchplay enters its toughest stage. The Welshman is playing for a place in the semi-finals at the Winter Gardens, following a much more convincing victory over Rob Cross and a post-match speech that sounded like a warning.
The PDC has billed this Price v Smith quarter-final as one of the evening’s highlights. Price goes into the match on the back of an 11-5 win over Rob Cross, with an average of nearly 98 and a 50 per cent success rate on the doubles. Ross Smith, meanwhile, secured his place in unusual circumstances, after Cameron Menzies withdrew from their last-16 tie.
Price is keen to recapture the atmosphere that accompanies his big matches
The interesting thing is not just Price’s qualification. It’s the way he talks about what comes next. After coming from behind to beat Martin Schindler in the first round – having trailed 4-0 and then 6-2 – the former world champion showed greater composure in his second match. Against Cross, he took control at the right moment and finished the match more decisively.
In comments reported by the PDC, Price reiterates that he is heading in the right direction, but he isn’t resting on his laurels. He says himself that he will need to be better to win the tournament. Here, we see something very characteristic of Price: that need for energy, intensity and stage presence. He believes Smith can offer him exactly that sort of match.
That is also why this quarter-final counts for a little more than just a line on the draw. Price hasn’t won a televised ranking title since November 2021, despite solid results elsewhere on the circuit. For a player of his calibre, Blackpool therefore remains a real test of his standing. If he beats Smith convincingly, the narrative of his week changes immediately.
Ross Smith didn’t get this far by chance
It would be too simplistic to portray Ross Smith as a player who reached the quarter-finals solely because of Menzies’ withdrawal. Yes, his round of 16 match ended in a very unusual way. The evening had already taken a turn with Cameron Menzies’s illness, and Smith benefited from the sporting decision that sent him through to the next round. But he had also got his tournament off to a flying start by beating Kevin Doets, despite the Dutchman’s average of 104.
Smith is a former European champion. He has already won on the European Tour and the ProTour. Put another way: Price is not going to face a passive quarter-final opponent. Smith plays fast, shows a lot of emotion and can really ramp up the intensity of a match. This is precisely the sort of opponent Price says he wants to face in order to regain his usual level of aggression.
On a night like this, there’s no room for error. If Smith imposes his rhythm and maintains his scoring power, Price will need to be more clinical than in his lacklustre performances against Schindler and Cross. If he lets Price sense that the crowd is responding to his energy, the match could swing into territory far more favourable to the Welshman.
Friday’s programme features two real show-stoppers
The Price v Smith quarter-final isn’t the only one on the card. The other match of the evening pits Gian van Veen against James Wade, in a rematch of their 2025 quarter-final. Van Veen is coming off the back of a gruelling tie-break against Wessel Nijman, whilst Wade continues to progress in a competition he knows better than almost anyone else.
| Session | Friday 24 July, play starts around 8.05 pm BST |
|---|---|
| Format | Quarter-finals, best of 31 legs |
| Matches | Ross Smith v Gerwyn Price, followed by Gian van Veen v James Wade |
| Venue | Winter Gardens, Blackpool |
| Broadcast | Sky Sports in the UK and PDC’s global partners, including DAZN, CANAL+ and Viaplay, depending on the region |
What this quarter-final could change in Blackpool
If Price goes through, he’ll reach the semi-finals with a momentum that wasn’t quite there at the start of the week. His comeback against Schindler showed his character. The match against Cross showed greater composure. A victory over Smith would demonstrate something else: the ability to step it up another notch as the tournament really starts to come to a head.
For Smith, the stakes are different. He must turn a somewhat unusual qualification into a genuine sporting achievement. A win against Price would remove the small asterisk left by Menzies’ withdrawal and put his name back in the running for much more ambitious goals as the World Matchplay draws to a close.
The priority for the evening: to see whether Price can recapture even a few flashes of the former ‘Iceman’, or whether Blackpool will truly provide him with the comeback match he has been calling for since the start of the week.
