The schedule of play for the William Hill World Darts Championship has been confirmed, with reigning champion Michael van Gerwen and former champion John Part in action when the £1.25m event kicks off on Thursday December 18.

The tournament will be held across 20 sessions in 14 days of play at London’s Alexandra Palace over the Christmas and New Year period – all live on the Sky Sports Darts channel – as players from 21 countries do battle for the Sid Waddell Trophy.

The six days of play from December 18-23 ahead of the Christmas break will feature the preliminary and first rounds, with the second round and third round held from December 27-30 before the tournament returns on New Year’s Day for the quarter-finals, semi-finals and final.

Preliminary & First Rounds:

Thursday December 18:

7.10pm John Part (30) v Keegan Brown

8.15pm Christian Perez v Cristo Reyes (P)

9.00pm Jelle Klaasen (29) v Christian Kist

10.00pm Michael van Gerwen (1) v Joe Cullen

11.00pm Wes Newton (13) v Christian Perez/Cristo Reyes

Friday December 19:

7.10pm Andy Hamilton (12) v Dave Richardson

8.15pm Kim Viljanen v Sascha Stein (P)

9.00pm Peter Wright (5) v Gerwyn Price

10.00pm Phil Taylor (2) v Jyhan Artut

11.00pm Stuart Kellett (32) v Kim Viljanen/Sascha Stein

Saturday December 20:

Afternoon Session:

12.40pm Andy Smith (28) v Ronny Huybrechts

2.15pm Scott Mackenzie v Daryl Gurney (P)

3.00pm Justin Pipe (17) v Lawrence Ryder

4.00pm Robert Thornton (9) v Andrew Gilding

5.00pm Ronnie Baxter (24) v Scott Mackenzie/Daryl Gurney

Evening Session:

7.10pm Steve Beaton (21) v Kyle Anderson

8.15pm Mark McGrath v Scott Kirchner (P)

9.00pm Terry Jenkins (16) v John Weber

10.00pm Simon Whitlock (7) v Darren Webster

11.00pm Gary Anderson (4) v Mark McGrath/Scott Kirchner

Sunday December 21:

Afternoon Session:

12.40pm Paul Nicholson (25) v Benito van de Pas

2.15pm Boris Koltsov v Haruki Muramatsu (P)

3.00pm Mark Webster (31) v Ron Meulenkamp

4.00pm Dean Winstanley (26) v Wayne Jones

5.00pm Kevin Painter (20) v Boris Koltsov/Haruki Muramatsu

Evening Session:

7.10pm Kim Huybrechts (18) v Michael Mansell

8.15pm Jani Haavisto v John Michael (P)

9.00pm Dave Chisnall (8) v Ryan De Vreede

10.00pm James Wade (6) v Jamie Lewis

11.00pm Ian White (15) v Jani Haavisto/John Michael

Monday December 22:

7.10pm Jamie Caven (19) v Jason Hogg

8.15pm Nolan Arendse v Alex Hon (P)

9.00pm Michael Smith (22) v Mensur Suljovic

10.00pm Raymond van Barneveld (14) v Rowby-John Rodriguez

11.00pm Brendan Dolan (11) v Nolan Arendse/Alex Hon

Tuesday December 23:

7.10pm Vincent van der Voort (23) v John Henderson

8.15pm Jermaine Wattimena v Robert Marijanovic (P)

9.00pm Mervyn King (10) v Max Hopp

10.00pm Adrian Lewis (3) v David Pallett

11.00pm Stephen Bunting (27) v Jermaine Wattimena/Robert Marijanovic