Thursday 2 April 2015 13:29, UK
Adrian Lewis must swiftly regain his survival instinct as he fights to stay in the Premier League, says Wayne Mardle.
The Stoke thrower has slipped into the bottom two and cannot afford another defeat in this Thursday’s Judgement Night, live on Sky Sports.
Fellow struggler Peter Wright will face Lewis in a tense encounter, while Stephen Bunting, Raymond van Barneveld and even bottom-placed Kim Hybrechts can all save themselves in Manchester.
The lowly position of Lewis has not surprised Mardle, who believes that ‘Jackpot’ needs the threat of early elimination to bring out his best form.
“The urgency is never there with Adrian during the league phase," said Mardle. "I think he needs knockouts – you win, you go through, you lose, you go home.
“Adrian just seems to struggle with the intensity of it. He doesn’t see it as must-win. If I lose this week, there’s always next week.
“He has underachieved in it massively over the years and I think the league phase just doesn’t suit his manner of wanting and needing to win week-in-week out.”
Lewis has not picked up a victory since inflicting a 7-1 rout on Van Barneveld in the opening fixture.
In recent weeks, the 30-year-old has struggled to contain his frustrations on the oche, and Mardle feels he must show more composure in his high-pressure clash with Wright.
One week he’s an absolute magician, like you have never seen before, and another week he’s quite average for someone like him.
He said: “You shouldn’t let the previous week dictate your mood, but it does. He needs to get something going, urgently now. The way he’s played, I think he’s struggling for form as well.
“One week he’s an absolute magician, like you have never seen before, and another week he’s quite average for someone like him.
“When he’s not playing well, he shows it because the game can appear so easy to him. When he’s playing bad, he gets a bit perplexed by it.
“The trouble is, you can get annoyed within yourself and sometimes he tries to fight it by acting nonchalant. Being nonchalant doesn’t help at all. He needs to be more focused than that.”
There should be plenty of permutations on a nervy night for the five players and a draw could even be enough to spare Lewis, if Van Barneveld is beaten by Gary Anderson.
But Mardle insists Lewis should only focus on controlling his own fate.
“He can’t over think it, he can’t over analyse it, said Mardle. “All he can do, is go out and get his two points.
“If Barney gets two and he gets eliminated or if Kim by some stroke of magic pulls off a win, and the other two lose - he can’t be thinking all this.
“He’s got to think win my game and then I’ll sit back and watch Gary Anderson beat Barney, because that’s the best scenario for him.”
Watch Thursday night's matches in the Premier League from 7.30pm on Sky Sports 1.
