Gary Anderson had to battle a little harder than he would have expected to see off Adam Hunt who put in a valiant performance to try and unsettle the Flying Scotsman with a 94.47 average - well above his average of 89.40 for the season. 

Anderson remained professional in that game, averaging over 95 himself, and hitting six 180s as he closed out a 3-2 win with the score being 13-10 in legs. I wouldn’t be surprised if he faces stiff opposition again here with Scutt being a decent player and performing well in his first round match - though Anderson crucially has more experience and a few more gears to work through when compared to his opponent here. 

Anderson is just a few steps ahead in every metric when compared to Scutt which should see him carve out more opportunities than his opponent:

These metrics suggest that Anderson is likely to be at least a scoring visit ahead of his opponent in most legs, and while Scutt may be able to pitch in with a few 180s to give himself chances - the rest of his scoring isn’t consistent enough to trouble the Flying Scotsman. 

This game could be the most enthralling of Tuesday’s evening session card with both players putting in solid performances in Round One to set up this clash. Anderson saw off Adam Hunt 3-2 in a more awkward assignment than many first thought, while Scutt navigated his tie with Simon Whitlock in a similar manner - winning by the same scoreline. 

Both players saw 10+ 180s in their opening round games, with that metric helped by both games going down to the final set. I can see Scutt taking at least a set from Anderson with his scoring power and tendency to save his best performances for a TV stage which should benefit the overall 180 count. 

Anderson hit six 180s against Adam Hunt in his opening round game, with three of these coming in the first set. This suggests that Anderson can settle quickly into games, which also benefits this angle as it shouldn’t take too long for either player to start hitting the red bit. 

Scutt only averaged 90.70 in his opening round tie against Simon Whitlock, but managed to hit eight 180s. It’s definitely his standout attribute when looking through his seasonal numbers, with his rate of 0.30 180s per leg just a touch behind Gary Anderson (0.31 per leg). 

These players have met once in a Players Championship event this year, with Anderson running out a 6-2 winner on that occasion - with both players hitting three 180s. It’s worth noting that Scutt doubled at 16% in that game (2/12) which is pretty illustrative of his issues at the back end of legs.