Gerwyn Price produced a spectacular comeback to book his place in the next round of the World Grand Prix, overturning a 0-2 set deficit to defeat his compatriot and close friend Jonny Clayton 3-2. The Welshman admitted the first two sets were difficult to swallow, especially the opener. "I like to entertain, don't I? No, I mean the first two sets were tough to take, especially the first one. I'm debating after the 38 hours," said Price. "I always split and go the other way and nine times out of ten I'll go in. That set hurt and the second set definitely hurt as well. When you're a set down, the opponent can get their tail up and play with a little bit more freedom. I'm always chasing the game. I'm just proud of myself to come back from 2-0 down and play as well as I did in sets three and four. It was a tough one at the end and I'm glad I got the wheeling."
Price refused to dwell on last year's defeat to Luke Littler, focusing entirely on the match at hand. "No, I never thought once about last year. I'm just in the moment. As I'm coming out, going back on stage, you can see two TVs on the left-hand side. I looked at the averages and I knew I was outplaying Jonny by quite a bit. He was just taking the key moments and the key legs and that's what winning matches. I just felt like I had to stick in there and score as well as I was but take more opportunities than I did in the end."
Clayton's ability to punish chances reminded Price of another player. "That's Jonny, he reminds me of James Wade, two of my best mates. You give them half a chance and they'll take it. Jonny's that sort of player. I think a couple of sets I was up maybe 2-0 or 2-1 and then he comes back and takes a set. If you're not ruthless enough and clinical, they'll punish you and that's what Jonny's done. Thankfully I started to play in the middle of the game and go over the winning line at the end."
Even after levelling, Price faced danger as Clayton went 2-0 up in the decider. "Obviously it's frustrating but I'm thinking break him over my throw and just put him under a bit of pressure. Thankfully that's the way things panned out being two legs down when he's got a throw. I'm just thinking get myself off because I knew I was outscoring him. I just needed to get him with my first or second dart and just plough the scoring game in. Even though I'm 2-0 down, I'm thinking break him over my throw and just put him under a bit of pressure. He had an opportunity and usually Jonny takes those. Like I say, he's a bit like James Wade, you give him half a chance and they'll take it. Thankfully he missed that time."
Price felt he played his best when keeping his emotions in check. "I didn't show any of that apart from the last leg. If you look at the set 3 and 4, that's when I'm at my best. I wasn't animated or anything. Sometimes I just get in a zone where I think just concentrate. In other parts of the game, you just think you need to release a bit of energy. I think I played better in the middle of the game. When I started to let my energy go, I probably started to slip up a little bit. I probably should have kept a bit more composure and I would have probably been a little bit easier in the last leg."
With Nathan Aspinall next, Price knows he must raise his level. "Tomorrow's another day and Nathan will say that to you. My first round was 101, maybe 102 average. Next game is a 90, so Nathan needs to replicate that 105 average tomorrow. I need to play a little bit better, but it's all on the day and Nathan knows that, I know that. I think if you look at the season as a whole, I'm by far the better player."
The victory reinforced Price's belief that surviving tough matches can be crucial. "Yes, but it's games in tournaments that you look back on and you think that's the game that could have knocked me off. Hopefully, that's the game that I should have lost, could have lost, but I didn't. The trophy is just there for the picking now, but it's not that easy."
Price believes the comeback can give him confidence. "No, I've still got possibly two really tough games to go, but to come through a game like that gives me a lot of confidence. Even though my back's against the wall and I'm not playing at my ultimate best, I can still get through games. Especially against someone like Jonny, a world-class player and a great friend of mine. There's a lot of added pressures, obviously wanting to stay up in the ranking. Jonny chasing me for Welsh number two, but he has great bragging rights as well."
Price will not return home before preparing for his next match. "No, because the last couple of days I've driven home, had a day off and come back. I said to my missus, we've got a five-hour trip after this. Two and a half hours home, two and a half hours back. I'm going to chill out, go back, shower, chill out in the room, maybe grab some food and prepare for tomorrow."
