Ryan Joyce was a surprise quarter-finals at Alexandra Palace last year and is hoping to build on that as he starts off his campaign this year against Dutchman Jan Dekker.
Joyce has the nickname Relentless and was certainly that as he outlasted seeds Simon Whitlock, Alan Norris and James Wade in his first appearance in the PDC World Championship 12 months ago before being overwhelmed by Michael van Gerwen in the last eight.
The winner of this tie will face Johnny Clayton in round two and that is a better draw than either player could have anticipated and plenty of incentive to go further. Joyce has quickly worked himself into the world’s top 50 and many in the game expect the 34-year-old Geordie to rise even higher over the next 12 months but he is still backable at a widely-available 8/15 to beat Dekker.
Joyce vs Dekker Current Match Betting
| Player |  |
 |
 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ryan Joyce | 4/9 | 8/15 | 1/2 |
| Jan Dekker | 17/10 | 6/4 | 13/8 |
Double Dekker is rated seven places higher than Joyce in the PDC rankings but has had a tough year, making little impact in minor Players Championship events. He’s never got beyond the second round of the World Championship and made hard work of getting past Lisa Ashton in round one last year so might struggle against one of the more progressive players on the PDC circuit.
