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We should expect more upsets in the third round.

2026 PDC World Darts Championship predictions: Previewing and picking the winners of the third round originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

If the first round of action wasn't chaotic enough, we just had an equally hectic second round take place over the past few days at the 2026 PDC Darts World Championship.

Only 32 players remain, each having their eyes on making it past another round as they look to reach a step closer to the final stages of the tournament.

With a lot of action ahead, it's time to break down what to expect and who is the likely winner in each match.

Predicting the winner of every third-round game

Let's take a look at what to expect in each matchup. The order of the matchups in the article is the order of the third-round matchups that will take place from Dec. 27- 29.

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Wesley Plaisier vs. Krzysztof Ratajski

Winner: Wesley Plaisier, 4-2

The averages have been stronger from Ratajski so far, specifically in his match against Alexis Toylo in the first round, but both are likely to average in the 90-95 range.

Plaisier's two wins were over quality opponents, with Gerwyn Price as the one that stands out, but he also beat an in-form Lukas Wenig, just a few weeks off his quarterfinal run at the Grand Slam of Darts.

I think it'll be a close game that goes 6-7 sets, but if Plaisier can raise his level even higher, he'll be a threat, even to an experienced player like Ratajski.

Andrew Gilding vs. Luke Woodhouse

Winner: Andrew Gilding, 4-2

Gilding is arguably one of the most in-form players left in the tournament.

He averaged in the high 90s in both of his games so far, losing just a set.

As long as he stays consistent with his doubles, it's going to be extremely difficult for Woodhouse to come out on top in this match.

Woodhouse hasn't had any eye-opening averages yet, with numbers in the low 90s being enough to overcome subpar performances from Boris Krcmar and Max Hopp.

Jonny Clayton vs. Niels Zonneveld

Winner: Jonny Clayton, 4-3

Jonny Clayton had a long break after being given a bye into the third round, after his second-round opponent was suspended.

Clayton's sole average in the event was in the low 90s against Adam Lipscombe, but we know he is capable of playing much better.

He'll have to do that against Niels Zonneveld, who has been playing more than quality darts.

Quality scoring should be present from both players in their match, but I think the doubling will be what decides the match, as Clayton is generally more efficient, while Zonneveld hasn't been the best in that area so far.

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Andreas Harrysson vs. Ricardo Pietreczko

Winner: Ricardo Pietreczko, 4-3

A win for either player in this round would have huge implications for their careers.

A win for Pietreczko would likely put him into the top 32, and a win for Harrysson would get him closer to the top 64.

The numbers on the surface don't indicate that the players have been playing great, but they've come out of some tough matches.

Harrysson is a bit of a wildcard, as we don't know how high his ceiling could be in a longer game like this, so I like Pietreczko's chances in this match, especially with him playing quality darts over the past few events.

Stephen Bunting vs. James Hurrell

Winner: Stephen Bunting, 4-1

Bunting has turned himself around in the past couple of weeks, appearing to be trending back in a positive direction after some tough losses at majors.

He survived a scare from Sebastian Bialecki in the first round and didn't have much of a challenge against Nitin Kumar in the second round.

Hurrell won't be an easy opponent, as he'll need to raise his level to keep up with Bunting.

Bunting tends to favor the longer matches, so I like his chances against Hurrell.

Luke Littler vs. Mensur Suljovic

Winner: Luke Littler, 4-0

Despite being the highest seed in the event, Littler hasn't had an easy route so far.

His two opponents have both averaged in the mid 90s, but Littler has yet to drop a set.

In the six sets he's played so far, three have gone to a last-leg decider, but it hasn't bothered him or his composure.

We know he's another player who likes longer matches, so I'd expect him to take advantage of that and get a comfortable win over an erratic Mensur Suljovic.

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Martin Schindler vs. Ryan Searle

Winner: Ryan Searle, 4-3

When I see this matchup, I immediately think of a last-set tiebreaker.

Both players have been phenomenal and have aspirations of making a run this year.

Schindler beat Keane Barry 3-0 in sets, but narrowly came away with each set in that match.

Searle hasn't faced much pressure so far, but Schindler will be a tough assignment.

It's going to be close, but I'm going to lean towards Searle in this contest, as he's been automatic at reaching the third/fourth round at the WC in his career, while Schindler has had his struggles at playing his best darts at the WC in the past.

Damon Heta vs. Rob Cross

Winner: Rob Cross, 4-2

Both players have averaged in the low 90s in the event, but Cross has looked great.

Heta is definitely trending in the right direction, but he's still having to battle out tight matches in games you figure he should be winning more comfortably.

A lot of people, including myself, counted out Cross entering this tournament, but he's shown so far that vintage Cross is slowly coming back.

I like Cross's chances against Heta, as Heta hasn't played well enough yet to show he can keep up with Cross, who has been trending back up.

Gary Anderson vs. Jermaine Wattimena

Winner: Gary Anderson, 4-3

Anderson has surprised me with how well he has played in his opening matches.

Anderson has not only scored well, but has beaten players who haven't played poorly at all.

Wattimena has had to escape a couple of close encounters, winning 3-2 in both of his matches.

The experience and form of Anderson make it hard to pick Wattimena over him, but he should still give Anderson a run for his money if he can play similarly to how he did against Scott Williams.

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Gian van Veen vs. Madars Razma

Winner: Gian van Veen, 4-1

Gian van Veen is looking like a serious title contender.

He's had averages of 98.91 and 108.28 entering the third round.

He's been able to beat both the big names and the smaller names, taking care of business either way over recent months.

Razma played well last round, but I don't see van Veen in any danger against Razma.

Luke Humphries vs. Gabriel Clemens

Winner: Luke Humphries, 4-0

It seems like we know what to expect from Clemens, as he's hovered closely near the low 90s.

Humphries avoided a match with Wessel Nijman in this round, who is a far better player than Clemens, as Nijman has continued to have difficulties executing and doing enough in the important moments.

Clemens did have a run to the semifinal a few years ago, but Humphries is in incredible form and won't give Clemens many chances in this contest, even though he just beat a quality player like Nijman.

Michael van Gerwen vs. Arno Merk

Winner: Michael van Gerwen, 4-0

MVG responded really well in the second round after a scare in his first-round match.

His win over William O'Connor gave us flashbacks to how he played in his prime, hitting timely checkouts and finding the treble bed with ease.

Merk has been one of the positive underdog stories so far, but he hasn't played a player anywhere near van Gerwen's level yet.

Justin Hood vs. Ryan Meikle

Winner: Justin Hood, 4-1

Justin Hood is coming off the best win of his career, beating Danny Noppert in a sudden-death leg in the second round.

His scoring and ability to be unfazed in any moment on such a big stage like Ally Pally have been amazing to see, and I expect him to do it again.

Ryan Meikle has won two important games, but Hood is a much different opponent compared to Jonny Tata and Jesus Salate.

Even if Hood's standard drops, I still see him having enough to overcome Meikle, who will need to be much better than Hood in the small margins.

Ricky Evans vs. Charlie Manby

Winner: Ricky Evans, 4-3

It's been another WC of classic Ricky Evans performances.

However, his standard hasn't been as high as you'd expect, but he's still showing that he is a threat.

Luckily for Evans, Manby has been averaging numbers in a similar ballpark.

It'll be another close game as we saw in his previous match, against James Wade, but Evans has already proved he can get past those hurdles.

Experience is key, so as long as Evans can average in the low to mid 90s, he'll be in control of getting a shot at either Gian van Veen or Madas Razma in the fourth round.

Nathan Aspinall vs. Kevin Doets

Winner: Nathan Aspinall, 4-3

Doets and Aspinall have had similar performances to this point, setting up what could be a close contest.

Doets has plenty of wins over notable players at WCs, so it wouldn't surprise me to see Doets keep up with the stride of Aspinall, but Aspinall tends to enjoy playing opponents at a similar skill level.

The ceiling of Doets in this game is unknown, but it can be good enough to make this a thriller. I still see Aspinall coming out on top with how he's playing recently and historically.

Josh Rock vs. Callan Rydz

Winner: Josh Rock, 4-2

Rydz won a gritty game against Daryl Gurney in the second round, averaging 96.59 in a 3-2 win.

He'll face the second player of the Northern Ireland pair that won the World Cup this year, but it will be a much different test for Rydz.

Rock didn't have the strongest performance in his opening match, but bounced back in the second round with an average of 101.32 in a 3-0 win.

'Rocky' won't get by as easily against Rydz, who can be an explosive scorer, but Rock is capable of that himself.

Rydz should be able to grab a couple of sets or even force a decider, but if Rock plays his A or B game, I think it will be enough to get by a standard Rydz performance.