Mardle’s Premier League verdict – man to beat, Littler ‘freedom’ and kind woes

After an unforgettable World Championship, followers can now get pleasure from a weekly dose of darting drama proper as much as the tip of May because the Premier League fires into life.

Eight of the perfect gamers on the planet will battle it out over the following 17 weeks for the fitting to get their palms on one of the vital coveted prizes within the sport – and the highest prize of £275,000.

Popular Sky Sports commentator and pundit Wayne Mardle shall be there each step of the way in which. The veteran of 4 Premier League campaigns offers his verdict on all eight rivals…

READ MORE: Wayne Mardle ‘anticipated higher’ from Michael van Gerwen after ‘unfair’ Luke Littler moan

READ MORE: Premier League Darts preview – on sale now for Luke Littler’s debut marketing campaign

Michael van Gerwen

“He’s still the man to beat. I keep backing him for everything because I still think he’s the best player in the world. He’s been playing very well without winning as much recently.

“That’s not the case in the Premier League, where he got the job done last year and the year before. He’s incredibly looking for title number eight.

“I think he’s the man. Over the long format, he’s more of the man. I want to see him challenged by Littler week in, week out because they could meet nearly every week. Wouldn’t you want to watch Van Gerwen vs Littler every week? I would!”

Luke Littler

“I can’t see Luke’s workload in the Premier League being a problem for the youngster. It’s already been mentioned that if he needs a break [by skipping other tournaments], he’ll take a break.

“He’s playing with more freedom in body and mind than anyone. He’ll be absolutely fine and, let’s be honest, he’s good enough. When you’re not good enough, that’s when you struggle. He’ll be first or second favourite and he’ll be favourite to win the next World Championship if he plays well in the Premier League.”

Luke Humphries

“I feel for Luke – he’s won the Grand Prix, the Grand Slam, the Players Championship and the Worlds, and he’s been overshadowed! I’m laughing because it’s an outlier. Someone’s come along [in Littler] that commands more press, but Luke is right up there as one of the players who can win it.

“Crucially, the bad games he’s having, he’s getting away with it. He had an absolute stinker against Ricardo Pietreczko at the Worlds. Joe Cullen then had him on toast but didn’t take his chance to beat him. Not only is Luke having a bit of luck, he’s playing the best darts of his life and, if that continues, he’s going to be very hard to beat.

“At one point in the Worlds, he said ‘I feel invisible, no one can beat me’. Imagine feeling like that! Luke’s level is astonishing right now, it’s just off-peak Van Gerwen in 2016 to 2018.”

Gerwyn Price

“He’s not playing well. I didn’t like what I saw in Bahrain recently, he looked to be struggling to me. In the Worlds, he had moments before going out. Gerwyn Price is there to win but his form is not championship-winning form.

“He’s got to find something. I think he will because he’s that good. His ability level is right up there with some of the best we’ve ever seen. He hasn’t regressed to the point where he can’t win but he needs to improve – and he knows that.”

Michael Smith

“After a quiet year and a disappointing World Championship defence, I liked what I saw of Smith at the Bahrain Masters. It’s a big year for him, but he’ll be fine.

“I like him in the Premier League. He hits a lot of darts and Michael Smith is very good when he plays a lot of darts. A definite contender for the trophy.”

Rob Cross

“I backed Rob to win the Worlds and I think he can win the Premier League. His bad games are very, very good.

“He’s probably better than when he was in 2018 [the year he won the World Championship] and 2019, but the world’s different now. There are more top players and then a 16-year-old comes along and upsets the applecart even more.

“He made a lot of noise about not being it last year, now he’s in it. He’s had some terrible performances in the Premier League in the past, but he’s now playing well and will be fine.”

Nathan Aspinall

“I don’t know what to make of Nathan. I look back at when and how players win things. He wasn’t great for a few of the sessions when he won the World Matchplay, then he had that amazing run in the final [against Jonny Clayton, winning 18-6], winning 10 legs in a row with an average of something like 110.

“Since then, he hasn’t played well and the Worlds was a massive disappointment for him. He needs to put some wins together and the start of the Premier League is going to be telling for him. He needs to hit the ground running.”

Peter Wright

“I think there were big question marks about whether Peter would be in it with Chris Dobey playing really well. He’s probably the only one who could have taken Peter’s place.

“Personally, I’d have put Peter in. I think the man commands respect. It was mad that he had such a bad year [2023] and still went and won the European Championship.

“How can you play that poorly and win a major? That’s how good Peter is. I’m always waiting for him to play well and, when he does, he wins.”

Overall winner

“Michael van Gerwen. It’s a big Premier League for him. He wins a lot still, but he’s maybe not getting the rewards he should over a whole tournament.

“The Premier League is something he’s very comfortable in so I’m going for him to win it for an incredible eighth time.”