PDC World Darts Championship 2013-14: Predicting Most Likely Second-Round Upsets

Friday evening will bring fans the second round of this year's PDC World Darts Championship, withthe competition edging toward its climactic stages as we move closer to its New Year's Day finale.

However, before that crescendo, the favourites must wade their way through the obstacles that still remain, reminded by the shock loss of Dave Chisnall that banana skins lie in wait.

With only a handful of the first-round victors still to be decided, here we'll discuss some of the most likely upsets in the coming schedule of second-round fixtures, including an underdog victory between two players ranked 62 places apart.

All head-to-head statistics are provided courtesy of DartsDatabase.co.uk.

Jamie Caven Beats Raymond van Barneveld

It has been almost five years since Raymond van Barneveld last appeared in the final of the World Darts Championship, with Jamie Caven seeking to ensure the Dutchman's drought lingers on this weekend.

Having beaten Jelle Klaasen and Jamie Lewis in the opening round, respectively, this will be the first time Caven and Van Barneveld have met at a World Championship.

The older of the two, Van Barneveld started the competition as 10th seed, while his opponent was ranked 23rd. Nevertheless, one can see the English underdog snatching a result from his more illustrious rival.

The Derby native was clinical in pouncing on Klaasen's lack of precision in his first-round encounter, beating the former BDO world champion as a result of his own mistakes. Van Barneveld has made it to the finals of the UK Open, Worlds and Premier League this season, but he has shown signs of nerves when reaching the later stages.

In order for "Jabba" to overcome the odds against his daunting opposition, Caven need only ensure that collapse comes about slightly sooner this time around.

Caven has never advanced past the round of 32 at the World Darts Championship and will need to bump up the 87.03 three-dart average produced against Klaasen if he's to change that streak this year.

Ricky Evans Beats Mervyn King

Ricky Evans may not have been a popular pick to succeed at Alexandra Palace this festive season, but the 23-year-old continued his sensational 2013 streak with a 3-0 routing of Ronnie Baxter in the first round.

UK Darts Magazine spoke to the player following his victory:

Next up for the 76th-ranked youngster is the test of highly seeded Mervyn King, hoping to make his first ever appearance at a World Championship final.

On paper, King should best the up-and-coming Evans, but then not much attention has been paid to statistics and form during the starlet's 2013 victories over the likes of Ian White, Gary Anderson and Jamie Caven.

Evans did lose to King during their Grand Slam of Darts meeting earlier this year, but will be all the better off for the experience and should pose a stiffer challenge this time around. 

Brendan Dolan Beats Gary Anderson

In truth, it's difficult to pick an underdog between Gary Anderson and Brendan Dolan, who come into this tournament seeded just three places apart.

However, Anderson's 2011 appearance in the final of the World Darts Championship ensures he is the bigger name in their last-32 clash, although Dolan will seek to ensure that does not remain the case.

Neither player has dropped a set in the competition as of yet and each player's three-dart average is higher than 96—Dolan at 96.72 after his 3-0 win over Colin Osborne while Anderson beat Mark Dudbridge with an average of 97.83.

Live Darts were following all the stats on Twitter:

Anderson's most recent win over Dolan came in May of this year at the PDC European Darts Open, but the Northern Irishman has shown on two occasions since then that he has the necessary skills to beat his upcoming Scottish opponent.