PHIL TAYLOR edged a dramatic clash with Gary Anderson 8-6 to draw level with the Scot at the top of the 888.com Premier League Darts table, as World Champion Adrian Lewis returned to form at Manchester's M.E.N. Arena on Thursday night.
Anderson entered his clash with Taylor on a high after winning his opening four games in the Premier League, but was left to rue missed doubles in the penultimate leg of a fine tussle.
He wired two darts at double top, which would have given him a 7-6 lead with the throw in the decider, but Taylor stepped in to take the leg and then swept to victory with a 12-dart finish.
Scottish number one Anderson will now take on Lewis on home soil next week in Glasgow, in a repeat of their meeting in January's World Championship final.
Lewis warmed up for that clash in style with a thrilling 8-2 defeat of Simon Whitlock, hitting three ton-plus finishes and eight doubles from only 11 attempts in a clinical display to end a run of three straight defeats.
Holland's Raymond van Barneveld bounced back from his defeat to Taylor in Exeter a week ago with an 8-2 defeat of 2009 champion James Wade, who slumped to a third straight loss despite hitting a 136 finish.
Terry Jenkins also returned to form, hitting six 180s in an 8-4 win over Mark Webster to claim his first victory since the opening week.
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888.com Premier League Darts
Week Five - M.E.N. Arena, Manchester
Terry Jenkins 8-4 Mark Webster
Phil Taylor 8-6 Gary Anderson
James Wade 2-8 Raymond van Barneveld
Simon Whitlock 2-8 Adrian Lewis
Latest League Table
|
P |
W |
D |
L |
+/- |
Pts | |
|
Gary Anderson |
5 |
4 |
0 |
1 |
+17 |
8 |
|
Phil Taylor |
5 |
4 |
0 |
1 |
+10 |
8 |
|
R v Barneveld |
5 |
3 |
0 |
2 |
+6 |
6 |
|
Adrian Lewis |
5 |
2 |
0 |
3 |
+2 |
4 |
|
Mark Webster |
5 |
2 |
0 |
3 |
-3 |
4 |
|
Simon Whitlock |
5 |
2 |
0 |
3 |
-4 |
4 |
|
Terry Jenkins |
5 |
2 |
0 |
3 |
-11 |
4 |
|
James Wade |
5 |
1 |
0 |
4 |
-17 |
2 |
Pictures courtesy Chris Sargeant/Tip Top Pics
TERRY JENKINS 8-4 MARK WEBSTER
TERRY JENKINS picked up his first win since the opening week of the 888.com Premier League Darts with an 8-4 defeat of Mark Webster in Manchester.
Jenkins had lost his last three matches since a comeback win against Raymond van Barneveld, but atoned with an excellent display against Webster, who failed to reproduce the form which saw him hit a 110 average against Adrian Lewis a week ago.
Webster actually took the opening leg against the throw in 14 darts, after Jenkins followed an earlier 180 with three misses at double four, before the 2007 Premier League finalist took command.
He hit another maximum to set up double top in breaking back in 13 darts for the second leg, and took out 140 with Webster waiting on 20 in the third.
Jenkins also missed two darts to win the fourth, as Webster posted double 18 to hit back, before the Ledbury ace took five in a row in a sustained spell of pressure.
The run began with double eight before Jenkins hit double top for three successive legs, and added a fifth 180 of the game and double ten to ensure at least a point at 7-2.
Webster raised hopes of snatching a draw with an 11-darter in the tenth leg, which featured his first 180 of the game, before he hit another maximum in taking the next to pull back to 7-4.
Jenkins, though, replied with his sixth maximum to edge ahead in the 12th and even another 180 from Webster was not enough as he posted double top to complete the win.
Match Stats
|
Terry Jenkins |
8-4 |
Mark Webster |
|
18 |
100+ |
14 |
|
7 |
140+ |
4 |
|
6 |
180 |
3 |
|
32.73 |
Ave1 |
30.30 |
|
98.18 |
Ave3 |
90.91 |
|
104 |
High Finish |
77 |
|
4 |
Legs Against Throw |
2 |
PHIL TAYLOR 8-6 GARY ANDERSON
PHIL TAYLOR edged a dramatic clash with Gary Anderson 8-6 to draw level with the Scot at the top of the 888.com Premier League Darts table.
Anderson entered their clash at the M.E.N. Arena in Manchester on a high after winning his opening four games in the Premier League, but was left to rue missed doubles in the penultimate leg.
He wired two darts at double, which would have given him a 7-6 lead with the throw in the decider, but Taylor stepped in to take the leg and then swept to victory with a 12-dart finish.
Despite Anderson hitting a 180 in the opening leg, Taylor took the early lead with a 73 finish before breaking the Scot in the second on double top.
The pair traded 180s in the third leg, but Taylor missed a dart to extend his lead further as Anderson was handed a reprieve for a previous miss at double 12 by hitting double three with his third dart.
The Scot then levelled as Taylor missed another single dart at tops, before the duo began a game of cat and mouse in being unable to break each other's throw over the next six legs as the scores became locked at five-all.
They shared 13-dart finishes and Anderson also piled in a 12-darter, featuring a 177, without having a dart to break.
Taylor won leg 11 with a brilliant 11-darter, which featured his third 180 of the game, but Anderson replied with another maximum of his own in taking the 12th on double ten.
With two legs left and a first draw of the season looming, Anderson saw his chance to break finally arrive when he was first to a double in the penultimate leg - leaving himself 100 after 12 darts.
He hit treble 20 on his return to the oche but narrowly missed two darts at double top, and Taylor landed a tricky double 17 to move 7-6 up going into the deciding leg.
Anderson kicked off with a 180, but Taylor replied in kind and also landed a 177 to lead 44 after nine darts, and when his opponent failed to finish 121 the 15-time World Champion posted double top to take the narrowest of victories.
"It's a massive win," said Taylor. "I would have been happy with a draw when we got to the final two legs, especially when he kicked in with a 180 in the final leg.
"I wanted to hit a 180 back and see what happens. He had showed his class under pressure earlier in the game and I was always trying to push him and put him under pressure.
"He's got the whole package and is so hard to break, as I showed at the end because I had to put in an 11-darter to win it. I love the battles again and I'm looking forward to another battle with Simon Whitlock in Glasgow next week."
Taylor had changed to using a newer design of dart since losing his World Championship title in January, but has returned to the set which saw him hit two nine-dart finishes during last year's Premier League Darts triumph as well as claim UK Open, World Matchplay and European Championship glory last summer.
"I've experimented and tried to improve but I think these are the ones for me," added Taylor. "I'm trying to push forward and improve myself but I prefer my old ones to be honest."
Anderson admitted: "I am kicking myself a bit. A few missed chances early on and I should have gone 7-6 up - the darts were so close and even with 8,000 fans in I could hear them clip the wire!
"It could have been a draw but I made the mistakes and he punished me.
"I enjoy playing Phil and his record will never be beaten as long as I live. I beat him the first time we played, in the World Darts Trophy final in 2007, and he has battered me since - but I'm getting closer and it's always a great challenge.
"Even thought I lost I'm still top of the league and there's a long way to go yet before the top four are finalised - and I can't wait to be back in Scotland next week to play Adrian Lewis in Glasgow."
Match Stats
|
Phil Taylor |
8-6 |
Gary Anderson |
|
22 |
100+ |
19 |
|
6 |
140+ |
7 |
|
4 |
180 |
4 |
|
34.65 |
Ave1 |
33.05 |
|
103.95 |
Ave3 |
99.16 |
|
85 |
High Finish |
43 |
|
2 |
Legs Against Throw |
1 |
|
8/18 - 44% |
Finishing |
6/15 - 40% |
RAYMOND VAN BARNEVELD 8-2 JAMES WADE
RAYMOND VAN BARNEVELD stormed to his third win of the 888.com Premier League Darts season with an 8-2 romp against 2009 champion James Wade at Manchester's M.E.N. Arena.
The Dutch ace made an ideal reply to last week's defeat to Phil Taylor in Exeter with a polished display against under-par Wade.
The left-hander began brightly by winning the opening leg on double top, but paid for a failure to score heavily enough as van Barneveld won eight of the next nine to claim the points.
Van Barneveld got himself off the mark in leg two with a 107 finish, and finished a 14-dart leg on double top in the third to take the first break of throw.
Wade crucially missed one dart to break back and level in the fourth, although a classy 136 checkout gave him the fifth leg to stay in touch at 3-2.
Van Barneveld, though, posted timely 180s in successive legs either side of the break, including a 12-darter against the throw, to move 5-2 up before double nine and double ten ensured he could not be defeated as he moved five legs clear.
Wade battled back in the next and had a chance after van Barneveld missed double eight to wrap up the win, but the 2009 champion missed one dart at double top before the Dutchman condemned him to a third straight defeat.
"I've been a bit up and down with my form so far and my doubles went in tonight and I'm very pleased," said van Barneveld.
"James hasn't been at his best but there are no easy games now, it's the toughest Premier League ever and I'm quite pleased to have six points after five games.
"I have to fight for every point and the standard is rising every year, so I have to keep playing well each week. I can still improve on this and I hope to do that, but I am happy I got the win."
Match Stats
|
James Wade |
2-8 |
Raymond van Barneveld |
|
18 |
100+ |
16 |
|
4 |
140+ |
7 |
|
0 |
180 |
3 |
|
30.32 |
Ave1 |
32.16 |
|
90.95 |
Ave3 |
96.49 |
|
136 |
High Finish |
107 |
|
0 |
Legs Against Throw |
3 |
|
2/4 - 50% |
Finishing |
8/18 - 44% |
ADRIAN LEWIS 8-2 SIMON WHITLOCK
ADRIAN LEWIS produced the performance of a World Champion to power past Simon Whitlock 8-2 and claim his second win of the 888.com Premier League Darts season.
The Stoke superstar hit eight from 11 attempts at a double in a clinical display to see off the Australian, hitting three ton-plus finishes in the process of averaging almost 102.
That saw him bounce back from last week's loss by the same scoreline to a red-hot Mark Webster in style, and included a seven-leg winning streak as he ended a three-game losing run.
Whitlock began well, hitting a 180 in a 12-dart finish to open the game and also landing a maximum in leg two, only for Lewis to deny him a dart at a double by finishing 72 to level.
Lewis then landed two 180s in a brilliant 14-darter to break throw, after two misses at double 16 from Whitlock, before taking out 113 and 96 in the next two legs to lead 4-1.
Lewis also posted a 180 in the sixth leg, but a missed bullseye allowed Whitlock a look at a 158 finish - only to agonisingly miss double 19 before the youngster hit double top for a 5-1 advantage.
Two more misses from Whitlock in the next, at double 18, allowed Lewis on to break once again on double eight before he then checked out 116 to ensure at least a draw at 7-1 up.
While Whitlock took out double nine to stay in the game in the next, Lewis was swift in completing a heaving win with a 12-dart finish, sealing victory in style with a 136 checkout.
"I had no choice but to win because I was under pressure and I was determined to play well," said Lewis. "Simon was coming off a couple of good wins but I did the job.
"Since I beat Phil Taylor in my opening game, maybe I've been too relaxed but I've worked hard since last week. Mark was brilliant and deserved to win last week but I showed that I can still play like a champion.
"My finishing was fantastic and Simon didn't do a lot wrong. He started well but I kept pushing him and I dug in.
"I had to win because the field would have started to move away from me and the top four would have been getting hard to make, but now I'm confident I can finish in the top two.
Lewis takes on Scottish star Gary Anderson in Glasgow next week, and added: "I know the crowd will be behind Gary and it will be a difficult game wherever I play him because he's a fanastic player.
"Most importantly I'll enjoy myself and I'm looking forward to it, it's going to be a brilliant atmosphere!"
Match Stats
|
Simon Whitlock |
2-8 |
Adrian Lewis |
|
10 |
100+ |
21 |
|
8 |
140+ |
4 |
|
2 |
180 |
3 |
|
32.39 |
Ave1 |
33.94 |
|
97.16 |
Ave3 |
101.83 |
|
81 |
High Finish |
136,116,113 |
|
0 |
Legs Against Throw |
3 |
|
2/12 - 17% |
Finishing |
8/11 - 73% |
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