Jump on the World Matchplay second round’s most likely upset

All of the big boys remain intact through one round of the PDC’s World Matchplay tournament in Blackpool, but the chances of the event playing out upset-free remain remote.

While all of the top seeds have safely negotiated a path into the second round at the Winter Gardens, one particular player in the field remains a sizeable banana skin on the path to glory.

Keegan Brown, the world number 42, was responsible for the ending 10th seed Robert Thornton’s participation in the event’s opener, with the Scot suffering the humiliation of being the lowest seed to lose so far.

In isolation, the defeat may look a little embarrassing, but in actuality should have been expected.

Over the course of his young career, Brown has developed a happy knack of upsetting the sport’s bigger names in premier events, so a price of 9/4 that he beats Dave Chisnall in the second round has to be worth a gamble.

As recently as the World Championship last December, Brown confined two-time champion John Part to a prolonged place in the commentary box with a first-round victory.

Earlier that season, the Isle of Wight native defeated both Adrian Lewis and Raymond van Barneveld on his way to the Grand Slam of Darts quarter finals.

That spring to prominence proved to be the foundation of a solid 2015, where the 22-year-old has claimed his first professional title, beating Lewis again in the final of the eighth Player’s Championship event last May.

Although Chisnall has won all four meetings against the Simon Whitlock-mentored upstart, he will still be wary of an early exit against a player that has proven time and again he can be deadly when underestimated.

All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing.

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