Day Four Reports

REPORTS, reaction and stats from the final day of first round action at the Ladbrokes.com World Darts Championship.

DAVE ASKEW 3-2 MARTIN BURCHELL
(3-1, 3-0, 0-3, 1-3, 3-1)

DIAMOND Dave Askew climbed off his sick bed to claim a place in the second round of the Ladbrokes.com World Darts Championship.

Askew, 43, had been struggling with a virus and may have had to withdraw from the competition if his opening round match against 35-year-old qualifier Martin Burchell had been earlier in the week.

However, Askew had recovered enough to produce a hard-fought 3-2 victory in the first encounter on Day Four of the tournament.

In the second round he will now face Alan Caves, who defeated Wayne Mardle on Wednesday night in the biggest shock seen at the Circus Tavern so far this year.

Askew, a World Championship semi-finalist in 2001 and 2002, took the first set 3-1 but made hard work of it as he missed 15 shots at doubles.

He then immediately broke Burchell's throw as the second set became a formality, despite a 180 from Burchell - the first of the match - in the third leg.

But Burchell's confidence seemed to have improved and another 180 saw him steal the throw in the third set, which he then won 3-0, before he took the opener in the fourth.

The match had completely turned around with Askew now struggling for form as Burchell took out 45 with three darts to make it 2-2 as the tie went into a deciding set.

Askew needed to produce something special and he did with a three-dart finish of 141 (treble 20, treble 19 and double 12) to regain the initiative at the beginning of the fifth. That proved to be critical as he saw out the victory and will now meet Caves in the last match on Boxing Day.

Match Stats

Dave Askew	3-2 (3-1, 3-0, 0-3, 2-3, 3-1)	Martin Burchell
24	100+	22
19	140+	9
1	180	2
27.58	Ave1	26.80
82.73	Ave3	80.39
141	High Finish	60

ANDY SMITH 3-0 SHI YONGSHENG
(3-0, 3-0, 3-0)

ANDY SMITH cruised into the second round with an emphatic 3-0 victory against China's Shi Yongsheng on Day Four of the Ladbrokes.com World Darts Championship.

Smith, 39, who reached the third round of last year's competition, was never in trouble against 36-year-old debutant Yongsheng and will now face either Andy Jenkins or Bill Davis on December 27.

Click here to listen to Andy Smith in DartsTV

"To be honest, I'm a bit embarrassed as I was terrible," said Smith.

"He (Yongsheng) kept missing doubles and wasn't scoring very much. I kept going but I had plenty left in the tank.

"It was quite easy, but too easy as I needed to be pushed a bit. I'm grateful that I won as easily as I did but it's better if you play someone who's hitting 100s and 140s."

The Pieman eased into a 2-0 lead in the opening set before he sealed the set in style with a 157 finish (triple 20, triple 19, double 20) as the match already seemed to be slipping away from the Chinese player.

Smith won the first leg in the next before Yongsheng received a huge cheer from the Circus Tavern crowd as he recorded the first 180 of the encounter.

However, he then proceeded to miss shots at the double 18, double 9 and three attempts at double 4 to hand the leg to Smith, who was now looking in total control.

A 180 from Smith led to him sealing the second set, with Yongsheng still failing to have even won a leg. Smith maintained the pressure at the beginning of the third with a 112 checkout and another of 71 saw him move one leg away from victory, despite a three-dart average of less than 80.

That figure would have improved after Smith's second 180 of the match and it was all over in less than 45 minutes as Smith hit double 4 to finish off the job.

Match Stats

Andy Smith	3-0 (3-0, 3-0, 3-0)	Shi Yongsheng
8	100+	10
8	140+	1
2	180	1
25.33	Ave1	22.39
75.99	Ave3	67.16
157	High Finish	-

WES NEWTON 3-0 TETSUYA WADA
(3-0, 3-0, 3-0)

WES Newton comfortably moved into the Last 32 of the Ladbrokes.com World Darts Championship with a 3-0 triumph over Japanese number one Tetsuya Wada.

Newton has never got post the second round of this tournament before but now has another chance when he meets either Kevin Painter or Colin Osborne on Wednesday afternoon.

"They're both good players so it doesn't matter who I play," said Newton. "But Kevin beat me here last year in the second round so it would be nice to play him again."

Newton, 29, claimed the opening leg by finishing on the bull to put the pressure on Wada, a 23-year-old who is also a black belt in karate.

The Englishman then repeated the trick by again ending on the bull for a 121 checkout to clinch the first set in what was proving to be a difficult Circus Tavern debut for Wada.

Bookmakers were so confident Newton would go on and clinch the victory that they stopped taking bets on him before the second set had even started. He broke the Japanese player's throw immediately in the second set as Wada was looking out of his depth.

He nearly enjoyed one moment as he was close to checking out 160 in a rare shot at a double, but that effort was missed and it was no surprise when Newton finally took the second set at his seventh attempt at a double.

Wada had a glorious opportunity to win the first leg of the third set. However, he hit double 1 when going for double 20 and then missed the double 19 bed on two occasions as Newton accepted the gift to move only two legs away from the win.

A 180 from Newton, his first of the championships, meant the result was now a formality and the score ended 3-0 to the Englishman. He admitted it was hard to maintain his concentration when the match was quite easy.

He added: "It's hard to raise your game. You're always there and there about but you're waiting for someone to push you. When you're winning quite comfortably it's quite hard to keep it going."

Match Stats

Wes Newton	3-0 (3-0, 3-0, 3-0)	Tetsuya Wada
12	100+	6
9	140+	4
1	180	-
28.36	Ave1	24.43
85.08	Ave3	73.29
121	High Finish	-

ANDY JENKINS 3-1 BILL DAVIS
(3-1, 3-2, 0-3, 3-2)

ANDY JENKINS dedicated his first round victory to his late father Chris, who died a few weeks ago.

Jenkins, 35, defeated American Bill Davis 3-1 to move into the Last 32 at the Circus Tavern, Purfleet, where he will now face Andy Smith in the next stage.

Click here to listen to Andy Jenkins in DartsTV

"I've had a hard time over the last few weeks," said Jenkins. "My dad used to come everywhere with me and obviously it's a sad loss for me, my mum and my family but I have to try my hardest.

"I've been practising a bit harder to do it for him."

The last two matches at the Ladbrokes.com World Darts Championship had seen two debutants both suffer 3-0 defeats and not even win a single leg against their more experienced opponents, but 47-year-old American Bill Davis was hoping to perform better in his match against Jenkins.

Davis did avoid a total whitewash by claiming one leg in the opening set, although Jenkins did still manage to stay on top with a 3-1 first set triumph.

A score of 177 started off the second set well for Jenkins, but two missed shots at doubles hurt him as Davis quickly broke the throw, before holding his own for a 2-0 advantage in the second.

The American had three chances to win the set but missed all his opportunities and that proved crucial as Jenkins, the number 12 seed, fought back to win the next three legs and move two sets ahead.

Once again, Davis won the first two legs of the third but this time he held his nerve as he finished off 52 to win his first ever set at the World Championship.

Both players claimed one of the opening two legs in the fourth but the advantage was still with Jenkins as the American would have to break his throw to stay in the tournament. However, he could not do that as Jenkins hit the decisive double eight to move into the next phase.

Match Stats

Andy Jenkins	3-1 (3-1, 3-2, 0-3, 3-2)	Bill Davis
20	100+	21
10	140+	11
1	180	1
28.14	Ave1	27.24
84.43	Ave3	81.72
60	High Finish	52

MARK DUDBRIDGE 3-1 JOHN KUCZYNSKI
(3-0, 1-3, 3-1, 3-0)

MARK DUDBRIDGE overcame his nerves to defeat American John Kuczynski 3-1 and set up a tasty round two clash with Andy Hamilton at the Ladbrokes.com World Darts Championship.

The 2005 finalist has endured a bad year in the PDC's televised tournaments, suffering four first-game losses.

But a switch to new darts helped him end that run with an at times classy win over the US Number One.

He landed the first of six maximums in the opening leg of the match, announcing his intentions with a 12-darter.

The Bristolian took leg two with a 15-darter before taking the set to punish sloppy finishing from Kuczynski.

The American - who reached round three last year - found his range in theecond set, which he took 3-1 and included a 13-darter.

Further maximums from Dudbridge helped him into a 2-0 lead at the start of the next set, before Kuczynski posted a 180 of his own on the way to taking the third leg in 15 darts.

However, Dudbridge comfortably took the fourth leg to extend his lead in the match to 2-1.

Two 15-darters in the next set put him within sight of the finishing line, and he took out 74 with three darts to seal the match.

Click here to listen to Mark Dudbridge in DartsTV

"I was very nervous," admitted Dudbridge. " I can't say how much pressure was on me because of my past performances.

"Everything came so easily for me a couple of years ago but I've had a tough time recentlu and haven't been performing to my potential.

"I've gone back to basics, practising when I want and going back to my natural ability. I'm through and have something to build on now."

Match Stats

Mark Dudbridge	3-1 (3-0, 1-3, 3-1, 3-0)	John Kuczynski
16	100+	16
7	140+	10
6	180	1
28.94	Ave1	27.56
86.82	Ave3	82.68
81	High Finish	69

ROLAND SCHOLTEN 3-0 RON MILLER
(3-1, 3-0, 3-0)

ROLAND SCHOLTEN produced a fine display to surge past Canada's Ron Miller and into the last 32 of the Ladbrokes.com World Darts Championship.

The Dutchman dropped just one leg and showed glimpses of his high-scoring best in a straight sets triumph.

He missed doubles to win the opening leg as Miller made a good start to land double 16, but Scholten stepped up a gear to race through the set.

Scholten landed his first maximum in leg two as he levelled matters, and took out finishes of 126 and 101 - for a 12-darter - to take the set.

The Dutchman won the opener to the second set on double one, but further legs of 15 and 12 darts doubled his cushion.

And he swept through the third set without Miller reaching the double to book his second round spot.

Click here to listen to Roland Scholten in DartsTV

"Ron tried his best but there was a point there I knew I had him early on," said Scholten.

"It was a solid performance and a good start to the tournament for me."

Match Stats

Roland Scholten	3-0 (3-1, 3-0, 3-0)	Ron Miller
14	100+	7
6	140+	4
4	180	-
29.96	Ave1	21.77
89.89	Ave3	65.31
126,101	High Finish	32

COLIN OSBORNE 3-1 KEVIN PAINTER
(3-2, 3-1, 2-3, 3-2)

COLIN OSBORNE held off a gutsy fightback from Kevin Painter to enjoy a winning debut at the Ladbrokes.com World Darts Championship.

The 31-year-old battled through the PDPA Qualifiers earlier this month to earn his place in only a fourth televised tournament since turning professional less than two years ago.

Painter, the 2004 finalist, began superbly with a 155 finish to take the opening leg, and landed a maximum on his way to the second.

Osborne stepped in to save the set with double ten and punished misses from Painter to level matters at 2-2 before hitting double 16 to steal into the lead.

The first two legs of set two went against the darts before Osborne posted his first maximum in a superb ten-darter - the best yet in this year's tournament - to move 2-1 up.

He began a second successive leg with a 180 before wrapping up the second set on double eight to extend his lead in the match.

Painter battled back in typical fashion to edge the third set 3-2 and stay in the match.

Osborne took the opening leg of set four and stepped in to take the third and a 2-1 lead when Painter missed his doubles.

The world number 13 took out a 101 finish for a pressure 12-darter to stay in the contest, and they traded maximums in the decider before Osborne took out double five for a memorable triumph.

Click here to listen to Colin Osborne and Kevin Painter in DartsTV

"I guess I looked pretty laid back but I was going crazy inside," said Osborne, who now meets Wes Newton.

"I just kept plugging away and when the chances came I took them. It's brilliant and I'll look forward to playing Wes now - he's a great player and a good mate so it should be enjoyable."

Match Stats

Kevin Painter	1-3 (2-3, 1-3, 3-3, 2-3)	Colin Osborne
26	100+	17
9	140+	15
4	180	7
28.65	Ave1	28.87
89.96	Ave3	86.62
155	High Finish	59

ALEX ROY 3-0 RICHIE BURNETT
(3-0, 3-0, 3-1)

ALEX ROY sailed into round two of the Ladbrokes.com World Darts Championship with a 3-0 win over Richie Burnett.

Welshman Burnett, the 1995 Embassy winner, was looking to reignite his career after falling out of the world's top 32 and being forced to come through the qualifiers to win a Purfleet place.

But his hopes were dashed by an on-song Roy, who dropped just one leg in a strong performance.

Click here to listen to Alex Roy in DartsTV

He took the opening leg with the throw, and punished Burnett's misses to double the lead before sealing the first set in 16 darts.

He also took the second set without reply as Burnett extended his tally of missed doubles to 11.

A 13-darter put Roy ahead in the third and he moved to within a leg of victory before Burnett finally got off the mark with double six.

But Roy had the last laugh to seal the win in 14 darts and set up a tasty second clash with Roland Scholten.

Match Stats