UK Open - Second Day, Afternoon

KIRK REPEATS GIANT-KILLING TO DEFEAT WRIGHT IN CORAL UK OPEN
GIANT-KILLER Aden Kirk continued his dream run at the Coral UK Open by knocking out Peter Wright in the Fourth Round at the Butlins Minehead Resort, as former champions James Wade and Raymond van Barneveld progressed to the last 16.

Kirk caused arguably the greatest upset in the history of the UK Open on his televised debut on Friday as he defeated reigning champion Phil Taylor in the Third Round. The 22-year-old from Nottingham followed that up with another assured display as he overcame World Championship finalist and current Premier League Darts leader Peter Wright 9-5 in the last 32 on Saturday afternoon.
Kirk opened the game with a 129 checkout and also finished 117 as he led 3-2, only to see Wright win the next three legs for a 5-3 advantage. Kirk, a product of the PDC Unicorn Youth Tour over the past three years, hit back to level and finished 78 for a key break as he moved 7-5 up, before winning the next two legs to complete another huge shock with six successive legs.
"To beat Phil Taylor and Peter Wright is better than a dream - it's just awesome," admitted Kirk, who had also defeated Conan Whitehead and Gerwyn Price in Friday's early rounds. "If you're still in the tournament you've got a chance of winning it, and I don't care who I play now! Words can't describe how I'm feeling at the minute and I just hope that it carries on and I keep living the dream. I didn't realise I won six successive legs but he missed a couple of doubles to let me in and I took my chance when I had it."
Kirk will now play Northern Irish number one Brendan Dolan, who defeated Nigel Heydon 9-7 in their last 32 game on Saturday afternoon, in the Fifth Round as he bids to win through to Sunday's final stages.

Two-time World Champion Adrian Lewis hit seven 180s as he produced a superb fightback from 7-3 down to win in a deciding leg against Belgium's Ronny Huybrechts, who checked out a 167 finish as he took command only to see the Stoke ace claim victory with 13-darter in the final leg.
"Ronny started like a train and kept me under pressure all the way through the game," admitted Lewis. "The 167 he hit was great but fortunately he came off the boil and I came good in the end. I had to dig deep but that will stand me in good stead now for the rest of the tournament."
Lewis now plays 2006 and 2007 UK Open champion Raymond van Barneveld in a tasty Fifth Round clash, with the Dutchman in fine form as he saw off Joe Murnan 9-3, initially taking a 5-0 lead before winning the final four legs without reply.

Another two-time UK Open winner, James Wade, landed a 139 finish during a 9-5 win over the younger Huybrechts brother, Kim, as he moved into the last 16. Wade was later drawn against Terry Jenkins for another eye-catching last 16 game on Saturday evening, with the seven-time major finalist winning 9-5 against Paul Nicholson in their fourth round contest.
World Champion Michael van Gerwen defeated 2013 UK Open finalist Andy Hamilton 9-5 and now plays Mark Webster, the former UK Open semi-finalist who enjoyed a narrow 9-8 win over Paul Hogan. Hampshire's Hogan, a Rileys Amateur Qualifier for the event, had come from 5-2 down to lead 7-5, only for Webster to punish his missed match darts in the deciding leg of a thriller.
Stephen Bunting missed double 12 for a nine-dart finish in the opening leg of his clash with Dean Winstanley, who went on to claim a 9-6 victory as the pair shared 16 180s during a high-quality contest.

Winstanley has been drawn against Kevin Painter in the Fifth Round, with the former Players Championship Finals winner securing a 9-4 win over Andrew Gilding.
Mervyn King was in superb form as he averaged 101 and sealed his 9-4 win over Dave Chisnall with a 154 finish, and he now plays Christian Kist, the former Lakeside Champion who edged out Vincent van der Voort 9-8 in a dramatic last 32 clash, as the 2007 runner-up was punished for missing match darts in the final three legs.
Gary Anderson's strong form continued with a 9-5 win over Shropshire youngster David Pallett, and he will face Stoke's Ian White in the last 16 after the World Championship quarter-finalist won by the same scoreline against Alex Roy.
2012 UK Open champion Robert Thornton was knocked out 9-7 by Austrian Mensur Suljovic, who now plays emerging Welsh youngster Jamie Lewis, who was a 9-5 winner over Plymouth-based Rileys Amateur Qualifier Simon Stevenson.







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