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With the Premier League darts edging ever closer, Wayne Mardle takes us through his predictions for the opening night in Leeds. The big boys are coming to the First Direct Arena with Gary Anderson, Michael van Gerwen, Phil Taylor, Adrian Lewis and Raymond van Barneveld just a few of the star-studded names headlining the show, and you can watch the action live on Sky Sports 1 HD from 7pm.Here, Sky Sports darts expert Mardle looks into his crystal ball to divulge his thoughts on some mouth-watering games ahead of us in the first week. Peter Wright v Michael Smith I think Peter Wright wins this. Making a debut is not its great getting up there - it really is nerve-jangling. I think if Peter Wright can get off to just a steady start, make Michael Smith think its a little different here. Hes never played in front of nine or 10 thousand - he wont be used to it. The noise can be off-putting and I think Michael Smith needs everything to go his way. If it doesnt then I think Wright will punish him and I think he will win this game.Michael van Gerwen v James Wade Whoever I talk to every week, this is going to get boring because if you ever here me say I dont think Michael van Gerwen is going to win ask me whats changed. I think Michael van Gerwen wins. I think he wins every week. I dont see anyone on the planet matching him right now - not even Gary Anderson. I just think Michael van Gerwen is the best by far.Phil Taylor v Raymond van Barneveld Its horrible this game. Im trying to look inside the mind of a five-time champion that has come off the back of the World Championship playing well. Barney should be high on confidence. Phil, maybe, just maybe will be ruing the missed darts at the double against Michael van Gerwen last week [at the Masters] rather than thinking do you know what, I played well. I think this is going to be tight but Im going to have to go for a draw because Im finding it hard to pick a winner and a draw is an outcome.Gary Anderson v Adrian Lewis I think Lewis is going to struggle again. I like the way Gary Anderson is playing. World Champion again - hes going to be high on confidence. Hell make the play-offs and I just think this will be two points in the bag. Adrian Lewis will be in a similar position in my opinion - itll be three weeks in and hell be thinking theres always next week. Adrian has got to add some urgency to his game during the Premier League.Robert Thornton v Dave Chisnall I think Chisnall is playing well, I think hes happy within himself. Robert has had health issues with his foot so Im not too sure how that is now, but I just dont think hes playing particularly well. I dont think that consistency is there but of course it can turn around, we know that. Robert Thornton went from nowhere to winning the World Grand Prix. Hes back inside the world top 10 so of course he can win - I just dont think he will.Dave Chisnall and Peter Wright are probably the two best bets of the night. Mardles PL predictions Wayne Mardle takes us through his predictions for the season Thursdays fixtures:Peter Wright v Michael Smith 19.20Michael van Gerwen v James Wade 20.20Phil Taylor v Raymond van Barneveld 21.00Gary Anderson v Adrian Lewis 21.45Robert Thornton v Dave Chisnall 22.30You can watch the opening night live on Sky Sports 1 from 7pm on Thursday, or watch without a contract on NOW TV.We will be building up to the coverage this week on our live blog here www.skysports.com/darts and the Sky Sports app will keep you up to date with all the action. Also See: Mardles PL predictions Sky Live: Premier League Darts Fixtures/Results On Sky TV Darts betting Ryan Tannehill Womens Jersey . 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The stakes were very different for the 24 players (singles and doubles) who earned a trip to London to compete in the World Tour Finals last week. So lets see how some of their ambitions played out in a tournament that, thanks to the round-robin format, gave each player multiple chances to prove his mettle.The winnersNo. 1 Andy Murray (5-0, def. Novak Djokovic in final)Murray won it all with an amazing display of sustained excellence that also vaulted him over Djokovic in the battle for the year-end No. 1 ranking. Given Murrays spotty record at previous World Tour Finals, this was a remarkable feat unsullied by the disappointing quality of Djokovics game.In fact, the final demonstrated just how deeply Murray had gotten into Djokovics head during the 29-year-old Scots relentless drive to the top. This was a magical final, akin to the 2000 year-ender in which Gustavo Kuerten stunned Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi in back-to-back matches to win the title and, like Murray, finish the year on top.No. 3 Milos Raonic (2-1, loss to Murray in semifinals)There were moments near the very end of Raonics dramatic battle with Andy Murray when the 25-year-old Canadians visage was almost scary -- thats how intent and focused he was. Murray won that match, but not before Raonic forced him to stare down a match point. The runner-up at Wimbledon, Raonic is the player most likely to win a Grand Slam among the contenders who havent yet won one. It isnt just that smoking hot serve and vastly improved ground game. Its his attitude.No. 8 Dominic Thiem (1-2, eliminated in round robin)Thiem thought he had blown his chance to qualify when he lost early at the Paris Masters. But his rivals for the final opening failed to capitalize, and Thiem punched his ticket to London.Although the Austrian youth won only one match (a three-setter versus Gael Monfils), he was the only player to take a set off Djokovic. Thiem also acquitted himself well against Raonic in his final, do-or-die round-robin match. Thiem, still just 23, picked up a lot of experience. He may have come in the back way, but he left London through the front door.?No. 4 doubles Henri Kontinen and John Peers (5-0, def.?Raven Klaasen?and Rajeev Ram in final)The Finnish (Kontinen) and Australian combo were torrid at the end of the year. They ended the season with a 10-match winning streak. Kontinen is bringing well-earned attention to a nation that is developing a modest but real tennis tradition, while Peers was the lone Australian player, singles or doubles, in the field.Kontinen and Peers defeated the all-French former No. 1 team of?Pierre-Hugues Herbert?and Nicolas Mahut in round-robin play, as well as the all-American, all-everything, hall-of-fame doubles team of Bob and Mike Bryan in the semifinals. It just doesnt get any better in doubles, unless you want to count the $455,000 prize money the winners split.The losersNo. 2 Novak Djokovic (4-1, loss in final to Murray) Djokovic might be one of the few ATP players to welcome the brevity of tenniis so-called offseason of roughly six weeks.dddddddddddd Thats because he has a lot to ponder following his repeated collapses at critical moments in the second half of 2016. They were unexpected implosions that made his remarkable first six months seem like a distant memory.But still, all Djokovic had to do last week to retain his No. 1 year-end ranking and restore his reputation as the dominant player on the tour was keep the hard-charging Murray at bay. The O2 arena was Djokovics house (he was striving for a remarkable fifth consecutive year-end title), but Murray took a wrecking ball to it. Djokovic offered shockingly little resistance. What a costly loss.No. 5 Kei Nishikori (1-2, loss to Djokovic in semifinals) Theres no shame in having lost to Djokovic, especially not when you consider how good Djokovic looked until the title match. And finishing in the top five in the world is a great achievement. Although Nishikori can win ATP 250s and 500s until the cows come home, for some reason, he almost always shrinks back when he has a chance to make a truly resonant statement.Nishikori admitted he just wasnt ready to play Djokovic in the semis, which helps explain the 6-1, 6-1 pounding he absorbed. After lasting barely an hour against Djokovic, the 26-year-old Japanese star said he had a successful, but long and tiring, year. Guess what? So did Andy Murray. And look what he did. The surprising thing is that on a day-to-day basis, Nishikori is a skilled, tough, relentless competitor. Time to see a sports psychologist?No. 7 Gael Monfils (0-2, withdrew from round robin with injury)Monfils had the best year of his career in 2016, at age 30. Qualifying for the year-enders was a highlight, but his trip to London was a bummer from the get-go. That was partly because Monfils sustained a rib injury back during the Stockholm tournament, and it continued to trouble him in his first two round-robin pairings against Raonic and Thiem.In his final round-robin match, Monfils was scheduled to play Djokovic. But the idea of meeting Djokovic, who had won all 13 of their matches, while carrying an injury persuaded the Frenchman to withdraw from the tournament. He told reporters: You know, you work so hard for this moment, then not be able play your best, is a huge deception for me.No. 2?Pierre-Hugues Herbert?and Nicolas Mahut (0-3 in round robin)There were two battles for the year-end No. 1 ranking in London this year. In the doubles draw, Andy Murrays brother,?Jamie, and Brazils Bruno Soares were locked in a battle for the top position with the No. 1 team of Herbert and Mahut.Turns out the French guys never really showed up, going winless in London. That enabled Murray and Soares to clinch the No. 1 ranking without having to win the tournament. They got the job done when they swept their three round-robin matches, a run that included a win aga