Darts in the world match: Michael van Gerwen overtakes Adrian Lewis as Joe Cullen takes a stunning 10-2 win | News about darts
Joe Cullen knocks out Damon Heta as James Wade wrestles with Martin Lukeman; Michael Smith fought back from 8-4 to beat Andrew Gilding 11-9 while Gary Anderson was eliminated; Watch every practice session at Winter Gardens in Blackpool live on Sky Sports
By Megan Wellens
Last Updated: 7/17/22 11:44 pm
Michael van Gerwen and James Wade edged past Adrian Lewis and forward Martin Lukeman respectively as Joe Cullen put on an incredible display on the second night of World Matchplay Darts.
The evening’s attention-getting game got off to a hot start with Van Gerwen and Lewis both hitting the ball well. However, Lewis fought back to break Van Gerwen and lead 3-2 at the first break.
Sunday, July 17 – First round results
Night | Joe Cullen | 10-2 | Damon Heta |
---|---|---|---|
James Wade | 10-4 | Martin Lukeman | |
Michael van Gerwen | 10-7 | Adrian Lewis | |
Luke Humphries | 10-7 | Nathan Aspinall |
Despite an interesting start, the following legs were more sloppy, with Lewis losing in the 15th and giving Van Gerwen a 9-6 lead. ‘The Green Machine’ tries to push the limits with his 10-7 win with his lowest-ever average at the Match and just hit the 90-point mark.
For the Dutchman, there was “no winner” in his clash with Lewis but he knows how tough the first leg can be at this competition.
“Of course, a win is a win at this stage of the game, the first round of the Match,” said Van Gerwen.
“The most important thing is to win your first game. It was difficult for both of us, we both couldn’t find our gear but I thought my doubles were the key and did. help me.
“I have to forget this game quickly because there is no winner in this game to be fair.
“It was tough, it wasn’t easy tonight but I’m glad I solved this problem.”
Sunday, July 17 – First round results
Afternoon | Dirk van Duijvenbode | 10-8 | Ryan Searle |
---|---|---|---|
Danny Noppert | 10-6 | Brendan Dolan | |
Gary Anderson | 7-10 | Daryl Gurney | |
Michael Smith | 11-9 | Andrew Gilding |
In tonight’s opening game, Joe Cullen put in an incredible performance against World Cup champion Damon Heta, winning nine straight to a 10-2 win over the Australians.
The stars lined up for Cullen as he started to prove a point, making a succession of attacking finishes to knock out second-round opponent Van Gerwen.
Similar to Van Gerwen, Wade witnessed a messy first-person encounter during his matchup with Lukeman. Despite averaging under 90, Wade managed to pull through and end the game 10-4, Lukeman put on a brave display to fall after his shot.
The final game of the evening saw a stellar performance by Nathan Aspinall, who took a 5-1 lead on his own, leaving Luke Humphries unable to respond to four max shots and four throw breaks. record.
Humphries tried to retrace the lead to 7-5 but Aspinall wouldn’t give up and eliminated one of the three favorites to win 10-5 in a dominant performance.
Monday, July 18 – Fixtures
First round | Rob Cross | with | Chris Dobey |
---|---|---|---|
Jose de Sousa | with | Gabriel Clemens | |
Price Gerwyn | with | Martin Schindler | |
Dave Chisnall | with | Kim Huybrechts |
Afternoon: Smith survives when Anderson is knocked down
The best match of the afternoon came as 2019 runner-up Michael Smith took on Andrew Gilding in his first appearance at the Winter Gardens since 2015. Gilding got off to a good start against ‘Bullyboy’, defeating him. him twice in the opening five races. but Smith fought hard from 8-4 feet down to win 11-9, losing seven of the last eight to win.
He was naturally relieved after his performance and knew that, if he could maintain the form he had found in the last eight innings, he was likely to win the tournament.
“The third training session after that I couldn’t afford to lose a leg, especially being 8-4 down,” Smith said.
“I just couldn’t find that first treble and I was looking for that first treble to follow it up. eventually pulled me out of the mud.
“I have kids there and pictures of the kids in my case and you have to dig in and show them that you can’t give up.
“I just hope it worked and luckily it did. When it’s your day, it’s your day.
“Sorry Andrew but someone has to win and luckily it was me.
“There are 32 players and you qualify based on performance and you see I’m in the final this year and so I don’t see why not.
“If I show up and bring my A game, most everyone in the venue knows there’s only one winner, so I just bring my game.”
The afternoon session opened with double Dutch joy as Dirk van Duijvenbode beat Ryan Searle 10-8 in a tense encounter, before Danny Noppert overcame Brendan Dolan 10-6 after coming back to win. six legs in a row.
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Next up was Gary Anderson facing off against Daryl Gurney, who, despite three offensive finishes for the ‘Flying Scotsman’, secured a 10-7 win in a clash that featured six throws in nine feet. Anderson, who had struggled with late form, was unable to find the slide for the last few turns and succumbed to Gurney.
Watch the daily Darts news on skysports.com/dartsour mobile app and Twitter account @skysportsdarts. You can watch the World Match at Winter Gardens in Blackpool – live on Sky Sports over the next nine days.