SIMON WHITLOCK is looking to 'do some damage' at Birmingham's NIA when he meets Phil Taylor and Michael van Gerwen in the McCoy's Premier League Darts at the venue on Thursday.
The Australian ace has kick-started his Premier League season with wins over Robert Thornton and Andy Hamilton in the past fortnight after only narrowly missing out on relegation after week nine of the revamped event this season.
After moving onto ten league points, Whitlock now sits three points adrift of fourth-placed Taylor going into Thursday's annual visit to The NIA.
Whitlock will kick off his double-header against current league leader Michael van Gerwen in Birmingham, before then returning to face Taylor in a repeat of last year's final - and he is determined to continue his resurgence.
"I've got the number one and two in the world and I'm going to try and do some damage!" said Whitlock. "I'll be trying to beat them both, and I can't wait.
"I won my first tournament of the year recently in Wigan and I got a lot of confidence from that, beating Michael 6-1 in the final.
"I know I can beat both these guys, I've done it many times before, and if I can win the first one, get some momentum and confidence for the second one, I believe I can do it."
Whitlock was last year's Premier League runner-up, and has his sights set on ensuring a return to The O2 in London on May 16 - but warned: "You've got to play one match at a time.
"I need to get at least six points out of my next five matches to have a chance of reaching the Play-Offs but I'm going in the right direction."
Click here to see a Simon Whitlock video interview on the OfficialPDC YouTube Page
Tickets for Thursday's McCoy's Premier League Darts are still available by calling 0844 338 8000 or visiting www.theticketfactory.com.
McCoy's Premier League Darts
Week 12
April 25 – NIA, Birmingham
Phil Taylor v Adrian Lewis
Simon Whitlock v Michael van Gerwen
Robert Thornton v Andy Hamilton
Raymond van Barneveld v James Wade
Phil Taylor v Simon Whitlock
Adrian Lewis v Robert Thornton