Gian van Veen defied a late onslaught from James Wade to set up a semi-final showdown against Gerwyn Price at the Betfred World Matchplay in Blackpool. Van Veen dumped out 2007 champion Wade in an attritional quarter-final tie at the Winter Gardens, avenging his defeat to the left-hander at the same stage of last year’s tournament.
The Dutch number one was nowhere near his blistering best at the Empress Ballroom, although he delivered the goods in the closing stages, despite an impressive rearguard from Wade.Following an inauspicious start to the contest, Van Veen landed a brilliant 160 checkout out of nowhere to open up a 9-6 cushion, before stretching his advantage to 11-7.
Wade hit back with a brace of bullseye finishes to kickstart his comeback, following up a clutch 79 kill with a superb 121 on his way to levelling the contest.Van Veen was undeterred, firing in a crucial 118 to lead 14-12, before brushing off a second 121 from Wade to complete a hard-fought 16-13 success.
“I was scoring so terribly. My scoring has been okay the whole tournament but today it just wasn’t up to par. My finishing got me through that,” revealed a candid Van Veen.
“It was a tight battle, but I’m glad I got the job done in the end. I’m still into the semi-finals of the World Matchplay.
“Even though I’m not scoring as well as I want to, I’m still getting through to the semi-finals. I’ve got about 20 hours to put that right.
“Hopefully tomorrow I’ll be a lot better because I’ll need to be against Gezzy.
“This is the second biggest major after the World Championship, so I’m so glad to get into the semi-finals for the first time.”
Friday’s opening quarter-final saw Price run out a 16-12 winner against former European Champion Ross Smith to book his place in a second World Matchplay semi-final.
The Welshman averaged 102.78 and crashed in ten maximums to cap off his best performance of the week so far in Blackpool, fending off a late fightback from Smith to confirm his progress.
Price produced early fireworks to seize the initiative, winning each of the opening four sessions by a 3-2 scoreline to establish a commanding 12-8 cushion.
Smith responded with a four-leg blitz to restore parity at 12-12, backing up a 13-darter with clinical 68, 72 and 80 combinations to threaten an unlikely turnaround.
However, Price regained control in the latter stages, converting a classy 121 on the bull followed by a double-double 91 checkout en route to victory.
“Ross played a good game, and it’s nice to play well when someone is playing well against you. It gives you confidence,” insisted the 2022 runner-up.
“When Ross got it back to 12-12, I thought: ‘Here we go again’, but thankfully I rolled off four legs on the bounce, so happy days.
“I’m trying to keep myself calm. It worked today, but on other occasions I need to let my emotions go. It has to come naturally.
“Like I said, I’m going to get better and better as this tournament goes on, and hopefully in the next round I’ll play better again.”
The Betfred World Matchplay semi-finals take place on Saturday evening, as reigning champion Luke Littler continues his title defence of the Phil Taylor Trophy against Dirk van Duijvenbode, while Van Veen and Price go head-to-head in the opening match of the night.
The Betfred World Matchplay is being broadcast live on Sky Sports in the UK & Ireland, through the PDC’s worldwide broadcast partners including DAZN, CANAL+ and Viaplay, and on PDCTV (excluding UK, Ireland, Germany, Austria & Switzerland based subscribers).
2026 Betfred World Matchplay
Friday July 24
Quarter-Finals x2
Gerwyn Price 16-12 Ross Smith
Gian van Veen 16-13 James Wade
Saturday July 25 (2000 BST *)Semi-Finals
Gerwyn Price v Gian van Veen
Luke Littler v Dirk van Duijvenbode
Best of 33 legs*
For the evenings session on July 23-26, Sky Sports will be on air from 1930 BST, with play commencing from approximately 2005 BST.
ENDS
Images: Taylor Lanning / PDC
