PDC World Championship - Match Reports 5th Day
Alan Tabern 3:2 Richie Burnett
(1:3, 3:0, 0:3, 3:0, 3:1)Alan Tabern came from behind on two occasions to end the hopes of Richie Burnett in a five-set thriller at the 2011 Ladbrokes.com World Darts Championship.
From 2:1 down Tabern stepped up a gear and won six of the last seven legs of the match to reach the second round of the competition.
Burnett held throw to win the first leg of the match after both had missed previous opportunities at doubles for an early lead. Burnett then doubled his advantage by hitting double 16 to win the second leg before Tabern took out 96 to win the third. Burnett, who was Lakeside World Champion in 1995, hit the first maximum of the contest before hitting a 64 finish in two-darts to wrap up the first set.
The Welshman missed an opportunity to win the opening leg of the second after a dart at bullseye to complete a 127 checkout was off-target. Tabern won that leg and then took the second, capitalising on more wasted opportunities from his opponent. Tabern, who last an epic second round encounter against Mark Dudbridge in last year's event then took the third leg to win the set by hitting double 16 to level the game.
Burnett made a winning start to the third set by hitting double 12 and broke throw in the next with an accurate at double 16 to complete a 14-dart-finish. The Welshman, who has enjoyed an excellent return to form on the PDC circuit in 2010, won the third to seal the set and lead the match for the second time.
At the start of the fourth set Tabern showed his best form of the match as he won the opening two legs in clinical fashion with two-dart finishes of 81 and 84. Burnett had chances to win the third leg, but missed two darts at doubles and Tabern returned to hit double seven to send the game into a deciding set.
Tabern kept up that form in the final set as he won the first leg with a quick-fire 13-dart-finish for an early break of throw. The man from St.Helens then recorded a 112 finish to win the second but four missed darts for the match in the third allowed Burnett to keep the match alive as he hit double five. But two maximums from Tabern in the fourth leg put him clear of his opponent and double eight sealed an excellent win.
After the match Tabern admitted: "To be honest I feel like I didn't deserve to win that match. If I was Richie right now I would feel a bit gutted, added the St Helens man."
Jyhan Artut 4:3 Scott Mackenzie
Jyhan Artut won a thrilling Preliminary Round contest at the 2011 Ladbrokes.com World Darts Championship against Hong Kong's Scott Mackenzie.Artut had led 3:1 but was made to sweat by Mackenzie and survived two darts for the match before coming through.
Mackenzie held throw to win the opening leg but Artut soon levelled with a 14-dart-finish to win the second leg. The third leg saw Artut break Mackenzie's throw after Hong Kong qualifier missed two darts at double top. Artut moved 3:1 ahead by hitting double 16 before Mackenzie hit tops to win the sixth leg and keep the match alive.
The sixth leg saw Artut miss two darts for the match and Mackenzie held his nerve to hit double top with his first dart to take the game to a deciding leg. The final leg saw Mackenzie miss two darts at double top to win the match and Artut hit a 76 finish to secure a first round clash against Denis Ovens.
Brendan Dolan 3:0 Kevin Painter
(3:0, 3:1, 3:1)
Brendan Dolan produced his best televised display to record a straight-sets victory over Kevin Painter in the first round of the 2011 Ladbrokes.com World Darts Championship.
The 37-year-old, making his second appearance at the Alexandra Palace will now take Wes Newton for a place in the third round.
Dolan started the match superbly, hitting a maximum in the first leg before hitting double eight for an early break of throw. The Northern Irishman hit another 180 in the process of winning the second leg before sealing the set by hitting double top in the next after Painter had missed two chances at doubles.
Dolan fired in his third maximum of the game at the start of the second set before hitting double 16 to win his fourth leg in a row. Painter managed to get on the board in the second leg with a fantastic 156 checkout but Dolan took out 108 to win the third leg and regain the lead. Dolan then won the fourth with a 64 finish, hitting double four with his last dart to win the set and leave Painter with a mountain to climb.
Painter hit a finish of 64 to gain just his second leg of the match at the start of the third set before Dolan won the second by hitting double 18. Dolan recorded an 80 checkout to move one leg away from victory and Dolan smoothly crossed the finishing line by hitting double top at the first attempt to seal a comfortable victory.
After the match a delighted Dolan said: "That's the biggest win of my career and certainly my best televised performance.The 180 in the first leg really settled me and then I followed it with another soon after. It gave me confidence and I felt really good from then on" added Dolan.
James Wade 3:0 Antonio Alcinas
(3:1, 3:0, 3:1)James Wade put in an impressive display as he began his bid a first World Championship title with a straight-sets victory over Antonio Alcinas in the opening round of the 2011 Ladbrokes.com World Darts Championship.
The Grand Prix Champion reduced his opponent to just two legs and will now take on either Michael van Gerwen or Mensur Suljovic in the last 32.
Wade made a scintillating start to the match with some incredible finishing to an early lead against his Spanish opponent. The world number two took out a 'showpiece' 96 finish to win the first leg of the match, completed by hitting double 18 and double top. The second leg was won with another 96 before Alcinas opened his account by hitting double six to win the third. Alcinas kept up with Wade's strong scoring and had left himself on tops to take the fourth leg. But Wade took out a 92 finish with two successful attempts at double 18 to seal the set.
Wade won the first leg of the second set by hitting double top and secured a break of throw to win the second after Alcinas missed a dart at bullseye for a 127 checkout. Alcinas, who was part of the heroic Spanish duo at the World Cup of Darts earlier this month, hit his first maximum of the match in the third. But Wade stepped up to the oche to hit a 121 finish on the bullseye.
That put Wade two sets up and he won two legs up in the third set, which included a 13-dart-finish to win go one leg away from the match. Alcinas continued to fight and keep the match alive by winning the third leg with the aid of his second maximum of the game. The 31-year-old from Majorca had chances to win the next, but four missed darts at doubles proved costly and Wade hit double five with his last dart to close out the match. u Denis Ovens reached the second round of the 2011 Ladbrokes.com World Darts Championship with a four-set victory over Jyhan Artut at the Alexandra Palace.
Artut, who overcame Hong Kong's Scott Mackenzie earlier in the evening, had a chance for a 2:1 lead. But his dart at double 16 was off-target and Ovens used his experience to win the match.
Ovens made his opponent pay for early missed doubles as he hit double 16 to win the opening leg. The man from Hertfordshire then broke throw in the second with the aid of a maximum and then hit double 10 in the third leg to open up a 1:0 lead in comfortable fashion.
Artut hit a 180 in the process of winning the first leg of the second set before Ovens won the second by hitting double top. The German, who defeated Wayne Mardle in the first round of last year's competition, regained the lead by winning the third leg but Ovens held throw with a 64 finish to win the fourth. Artut held the advantage of throw in the deciding leg and made that count by getting to a finish first and hitting double eight to level the game at one set apiece.
Artut won the opening leg of the third set against the darts, hitting his second maximum of the game and then moved 2:0 ahead with a 112 checkout. Ovens won the third leg with a 13 darter and then won the fourth after Artut missed one dart at double 16 for the set. Ovens compounded the error from the German in the deciding leg as he hit double 16 to go ahead in the match for the second time.
Artut won the opening leg of the fourth set fired in his third maximum of the game in the process before Ovens won the second by hitting double 10. Ovens, who reached the semi-finals of this year's UK Open then took out a 106 to win the third leg against the darts after Artut missed two chances to win the leg. And in the fourth leg Ovens wrapped up the match with a 13-dart-finish to seal a last 32 clash with Simon Whitlock.