Nathan Aspinall, Michael van Gerwen, Michael Smith and Rob Cross battling for final two Premier League play-off spots; Luke Littler needs two match wins over final two weeks to guarantee top spot in table; watch Premier League Darts on Sky Sports, with Finals Night on Thursday May 23
Friday 3 May 2024 18:17, UK
Luke Littler and Luke Humphries have already qualified for the Premier League Darts play-offs - but who will join them?
Four men are vying for the final two spots at London's O2 Arena on Thursday May 23 - Nathan Aspinall, defending champion Michael van Gerwen, Michael Smith and Rob Cross.
Gerywn Price and Peter Wright are no longer able to gatecrash the top four, with Price's elimination confirmed after he was forced to withdraw from Night 14 with a back problem.
Just two weeks of the regular season remain, with both of them to be held in Yorkshire, first in Leeds on Thursday May 9, then Sheffield on Thursday May 16.
Littler tightened his grip on top spot with his fourth nightly win of the season in Aberdeen on May 2.
The teenager is now eight points clear of second-placed Humphries, the only man who can stop him from finishing first in the league phase.
If Humphries were to win the remaining nights in Leeds and Sheffield, he would move onto 38 points. In that scenario, Littler would need two match wins over the course of the final two evenings to secure top position.
If he only won one match, Humphries proceeded to triumph in Leeds and Sheffield, and they were both locked on 38 points, then Humphries would finish top by dint of winning five nights to Littler's four.
If Littler and Humphries end up with 36 points, which will happen if Littler loses in the quarter-finals both weeks and Humphries wins one night and comes runner-up in the other, Littler will finish top.
In that scenario, both players will have won four nights but Littler will edge Humphries on match wins, claiming 21 to Cool Hand's 20.
Aspinall and Van Gerwen are clinging on to the final two places in the top four at the moment, but Smith and, to a lesser extent, Cross have a chance of chasing them down.
Just three points separate Aspinall (25), Van Gerwen (24) and Smith (22), with Cross seven behind fourth-placed Van Gerwen after finishing runner-up to the in-form Littler on Night 13 in Liverpool and Night 14 in Aberdeen.
Aspinall plays Smith in the quarter-finals on Night 15 in Leeds, so a win for 'The Asp' would mean he leads Smith by at least five points at the end of that evening. If Aspinall then won his semi-final, Smith would be unable to overhaul him.
Equally, the Aspinall quarter-final gives Smith the chance to close the gap.
Van Gerwen's advantage could be the number of nightly wins, should players end up on the same points. The Dutchman has picked up four overall wins so far this season and of his play-off rivals, only Aspinall can match that tally with The Asp currently on two.
Cross - who plays Humphries in the Leeds quarter-finals - is the outsider, with the 2018 world champion probably needing to win both nights to stand a chance.
Adding further intrigue is that on Night 16 in Sheffield matches are determined by league position, so we could have one heck of a shootout as the play-off race concludes.
Price and Wright are not part of that, of course, but could still have an impact on who finishes in the top four, with Price - fitness-permitting - to face Van Gerwen in the Leeds quarter-finals.
Wright will play Littler in the quarter-finals for the next two weeks - they are guaranteed to be eighth and first respectively in the table come Night 16 - so he could also dent the teenager's hopes of finishing top.
It's one of the biggest sporting events in a generation. Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk collide for the undisputed world heavyweight championship on Saturday May 18, live on Sky Sports Box Office. Book now.
Stream Sky Sports live with no contract on a Month or Day membership on NOW. Instant access to live action from the Premier League and EFL, plus darts, cricket, tennis, golf and so much more.
You can now receive messages and alerts for the latest breaking sports news, analysis, in-depth features and videos from our dedicated WhatsApp channel. Find out more here...
