REPORTS from the quarter-finals of the Topic International Darts League - with wins for Colin Lloyd, Raymond van Barneveld, Roland Scholten and Simon Whitlock - in a thriller against Phil Taylor.
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Topic IDL - Quarter-Finals
Colin Lloyd 6-3 Ted Hankey
Raymond van Barneveld 6-3 Michael van Gerwen
Roland Scholten 6-4 Martin Adams
Simon Whitlock 6-5 Phil Taylor
Pictures courtesy Robert Lusing, Topic IDL
COLIN LLOYD 6-3 TED HANKEY
(0-2, 2-1, 2-1, 2-1, 0-2, 2-0, 1-2, 2-1, 2-0)
COLIN LLOYD booked a place in the semi-finals of the Topic International Darts League with a 6-3 victory over Ted Hankey.
Lloyd bounced back from losing the opening set 2-0 to lead 3-1, winning the third set with an 11-dart leg against the throw.
Hankey won the fifth set in straight legs - landing a 155 finish in the first - to cut the deficit to 3-2 at the break.
But Lloyd punished him for missed doubles to win the sixth set with a brilliant 128 finish, and he also checked out 152 in the next set.
Hankey won the deciding leg to reduce the arrears to 4-3, but never recovered after missing a dart at the bull to level the match.
Lloyd landed double two to take the set 2-1, and hit double ten in the next two legs to complete his victory and move into the last four.
"I'm over the moon," said Lloyd. "It wasn't spectacular, my average was only 28 per dart, but the thing that matters is that I'm through.
"I think the 128 was crucial to put me 4-2 up - it really put pressure on Ted.
"I'm here to win this and my confidence is up. I'm feeling good for the rest of the tournament."
RAYMOND VAN BARNEVELD 6-3 MICHAEL VAN GERWEN
(0-2, 2-0, 2-0, 1-2, 2-0, 1-2, 2-0, 2-1, 2-0)
RAYMOND VAN BARNEVELD ended Michael van Gerwen's dream run at the Topic IDL with a brilliant 6-3 quarter-final victory over the teenager.
The two Dutch stars slugged out a brilliant contest at the Triavium in Nijmegen, hitting 13 maximums between them.
Van Gerwen landed seven in the match, and twice hit seven perfect darts only to miss treble 19 in his bid for a nine-dart leg.
The 17-year-old won the opening set against the throw, taking the first two legs without reply.
Van Barneveld broke his opponent's throw at the start of the second set, and levelled the match with a cool 131 finish.
He also took the next two legs to move 2-1 up in the game before van Gerwen won the fourth set in a decider - despite a 113 checkout from van Barneveld in the second leg - to tie the game once more.
Van Barneveld went into the break 3-2 up after winning the fifth set without reply, but van Gerwen again hit back.
He was a leg down in the sixth set, but an 11-dart leg was followed by a 13-darter to square the match.
Van Barneveld found another gear, winning the next two legs in 14 darts before coming from behind in the eighth set to move 5-3 up.
He opened the next set with 180 and 140 to move within a leg of the match, and though van Gerwen responded with a maximum in the next the teenager's missed doubles cost him, with van Barneveld landing double eight to seal victory.
"I knew it was going to be hard for me," said van Barneveld. "I thought it would be like being against Jelle in the Lakeside Final in January, with the crowd against me and behind the youngster.
"They were more divided today, they cheered for me too, and it made for a great game.
"When I got the eighth set, I thought that was crucial to go 5-3 up and I knew if I held my throw it was mine.
"This tournament is different now, the first six days were in groups but it's knockout now."
ROLAND SCHOLTEN 6-4 MARTIN ADAMS
(0-2, 2-1, 1-2, 2-1, 0-2, 2-0, 2-1, 1-2, 2-0, 2-0)
ROLAND SCHOLTEN joined Raymond van Barneveld and Colin Lloyd in the semi-finals of the Topic IDL after overcoming Martin Adams 6-4.
The Dutchman finished the stronger of the two in a hard-fought battle, which saw the pair inseparable after eight sets before Scholten took four straight legs and victory.
"It was a real nitty gritty game," said Scholten. "I've got the utmost respect for Martin - I used to practice with him so I know what he's capable of.
"He didn't quite produce that tonight, but he had a few calls from the crowd at the wrong time which was disappointing.
"Perhaps stamina and match practice was the difference. I've been playing in the Holsten Premier League for the past three months, whereas Martin hasn't appeared in a major TV event since January."
If that was a factor, it hardly showed in the opening sets, with Adams taking the first without reply.
The next three all went to a decider as Scholten hit back to level at 2-2, with Adams edging himself ahead going into the interval.
Scholten won the next two legs after the restart to tie the match, and moved ahead for the first time by taking the seventh set in a decider.
Adams came from 1-0 down to win the eighth and square the contest, but Scholten's burst of four successive legs was enough to set up a semi-final against close friend, and world number one, Colin Lloyd.
"I'm really looking forward to the semi-final," he added. "Colin's done very well so far and it will be a great game."
SIMON WHITLOCK 6-5 PHIL TAYLOR
(2-1, 2-1, 0-2, 2-1, 0-2, 2-1, 0-2, 0-2, 1-2, 2-0, 4-3)
SIMON WHITLOCK edged out Phil Taylor 6-5 in a classic contest to move into the last four of the Topic International Darts League.
The Australian was sensational against the 13-time World Champion, leading 3-1 and 4-2 as well as fighting back when Taylor stormed into a 5-4 lead.
Whitlock announced his intentions by coming from behind to win the opening set, before adding the second in a decider to move 2-0 up.
Taylor twice responded with double 16 to win the third set, but Whitlock landed a maximum in each of the three legs on his way to winning the fourth set.
Taylor won the fifth to pull back to 3-2 at the break, but Whitlock restored his advantage with finishes of 80 and 135 in the sixth set.
Taylor suddenly stormed into top gear, winning six of the next seven legs to take three sets and move in front for the first time in the game at 5-4.
Whitlock levelled matters by winning the tenth set without reply to send the game into a decisive final set.
A superb 153 finish put Taylor ahead before Whitlock responded in 13 darts.
Taylor moved 2-1 by crucially landing double five with his last dart, but again Whitlock levelled, hitting double top after his opponent missed the bull.
The Australian then took the fifth leg against the darts to move in front, but Taylor took the game into sudden death by landing a 124 finish.
Taylor won the bullseye and opened the leg with a 177 shot, but crucially three treble 19s for a 171 enabled Whitlock to keep pace as the pair approached a checkout.
Taylor had one dart at the bull for an 84 finish and was wide - and Whitlock took out 94 with bull, treble 19 and double six to move into the last four.
He will face Raymond van Barneveld in Saturday's semi-final contest.