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Dave Chisnall crashed out of the World Darts Championship after a dramatic final leg loss to Ricky Evans, while former world champion Rob Cross was also eliminated in an extraordinary session at Alexandra Palace.
Chisnall won the first set of a fierce contest but had to recover from 2-1 down to extend their epic clash to the final set, where both players survived a darts match to take it into extra legs.
Evans fired a 110 checkout on his way back in front and saw Chisnall recover from a shocking miscalculation on the multi-ton finish to hold the toss, with ‘Rapid Ricky’ then taking the final leg of the match to send another holder in the direction early exit.
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Actor Shaun Williamson performs a string of big hits for the Alexandra Palace faithful at the World Darts Championship.
An epic pre-Christmas session saw Daryl Gurney take a last-set decider against Florian Hempel and World Youth Champion Gian Van Veen knocked out by Ricardo Pietreczko, before Cross was beaten 3-1 by Scott Williams in the final match of the night.
Cross’ early exit made him the 14th seed to be eliminated in the second round, a new record for this stage of the competition, with Williams – defeated by eventual champion Luke Humphries in last year’s semi-final – the last to secure his place in the last 32.
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A record 14 seeds have now been eliminated until the second round of the World Darts Championship, see a recap of the key moments from the second round.
An early Christmas classic in an amazing session
Evans brought the holiday cheer with his Christmas themed T-shirt and Shakin Stevens walking track, only for Chisnall to take early control opening with a 12-dart break and holding the roll in the next.
Chisnall responded to Evans’ stunning 126 checkout and missed the ‘Big Fish’ attempt to win the set by 15 darts, but he gambled a set dart on D5 in the final leg of the second leg to allow ‘Rapid Ricky’ to kick out and level.
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Moments after Chisnall almost got a checkout of 170, Evans scored a big 126 to fight back in the first set
Evans surged ahead to seal the third set with 13 darts but watched Chisnall hit back with a clean sweep in the fourth and ‘Chizzy’ had to come from behind three times to take a thrilling decider.
Both players missed match darts during a chaotic final stretch, where Evans extended the contest with a superb 110 checkout for a break back, then found a 17-dart hold to move a leg away.
Ricky Evans knocked out Dave Chisnall in a dramatic second round contest at Alexandra Palace.
Chisnall survived a premature miscalculated finish to find the ‘Mad House’ on his next visit and drag the set to the 11th and final leg, where Evans took the tops to claim the 52nd finish and spark wild celebrations.
“I played with a world-class darts player there, and I played pretty well,” Evans he told Sky Sports. “It’s nice to say I won the game and played well – otherwise it’s boring! I wish I beat Chizzy 3-0 because then my ticker would tick a little slower!”
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Evans gives a brilliant and hilarious post-match interview with Abigail Davies and mocks the Alexandra Palace crowd for supporting him during his win over Chisnall
Gurney survives the scare while Cross advances
Another surprise was on the cards when Gurney dropped a set against Hempel, who was on the verge of taking the second set to a decider when the Northern Irishman fired a 156 checkout for a 15-dart break to level the match.
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Daryl Gurney leveled his match with Florian Hempel by taking a big 156 for 1-1
Hempel took the third set in straight legs and was within one leg of victory during a tight fourth, before Gurney delivered back-to-back 13-dart legs to level the match and then break the German early in the decider.
Gurney held on in the next en route to wrapping up a hard-fought victory, leaving him facing seventh seed Jonny Clayton in the third round, while Cross was another big name to drop out after a disappointing loss to Williams.
Rob Cross was another player who was eliminated in the second round
Cross held the throw in the final leg of the opening set before Williams grabbed second with a 14-dart hold in the deciding second leg, and the contest also threatened to go the distance when Cross made a 130 checkout at the start of the third set.
But Williams won the next three legs to move a set ahead, capitalizing on a poor finish from Cross, before securing victory in the next set – and avenging a loss to the Englishman two years earlier – with a 14-dart dart on top in the final leg.
Elsewhere, Van Veen missed eight darts to break his opponent in a tight opening leg as Pietreczko raced through the opening set, although he responded by firing a brilliant 12 dart 127 checkout en route to leveling the contest in the second.
Pietreczko moved back in front when he scored 122 in the third set in straight legs, then broke Van Veen with 16 darts and held the throw in the next to reach the third round for the second straight year.
Clayton leads in the closing stages of the epic, and Rock passes
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Jonny Clayton and Mickey Mansell battled it out in an epic final set that included a three-plus ton finish, a 10-dart leg, many match darts and a sudden-death finish
Earlier, Clayton appeared to be racing to the finish line when he won six legs in a row, only for Mickey Mansell to force a deciding set and then hit incredible 136 and 154 finishes to move within a leg of victory.
The Welshman won the next two legs to extend the contest, with both players missing match darts, taking the set to a shootout in the final leg, where he used his darts to find a way over the line.
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Mansell scored a 136 checkout followed by a 154 finish in the deciding set against Clayton
Elsewhere, Josh Rock cruised past Rhys Griffin 3-0, losing just two legs to set up a last-32 tie with Chris Dobey, while the other two seeds in action on Monday afternoon also went through.
Polish No. 1 Krzysztof Ratajski beat Alexis Toylo 3-1 and Andrew Gilding defeated Martin Lukeman by the same scoreline, with Ratajski now taking on Kevin Doets – who surprised former world champion Michael Smith – and Gilding taking on Nathan Aspinall.
When does the third round take place?
Darts returns after Christmas on 27th December, with four consecutive days of double sessions at Alexandra Palace to see rounds three and four completed by 30th December.
World No.1 Luke Humphries takes on Nick Kenny in the evening slot on Friday, while reigning Premier League champion Luke Littler is in action against Ian White on Saturday night.
Elsewhere, Michael van Gerwen faces Brendan Dolan (Saturday) and former world champion Gerwyn Price entertains Joe Cullen (Friday).
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Luke Littler won the final set against Ryan Meikle in just 32 darts to set up a third round meeting with Ian White
The players have the night off on New Year’s Eve before the quarter-finals are played over two sessions on New Year’s Day, with the semi-finals on January 2 and the final on Friday, January 3.
You can find the complete daily schedule for this year’s tournament here.
Who Will Win The Paddy Power World Darts Championship? Watch every match exclusively live until January 3 on Sky Sports’ dedicated darts channel. Stream darts and more top sports with NOW
