Dave Chisnall hits superb nine-darter in Grand Slam
Monday 9 November 2015 11:47, UK
Dave Chisnall hit his first televised nine-darter in a glittering display as he beat Peter Wright 5-2 in the Grand Slam on Sunday.
Chisnall was in superb form throughout the contest and at one point threatened to beat 16-time world champion Phil Taylor's average of 118 before eventually finishing with 109.
The nine-darter gave Chisnall a 3-0 lead and he made it four with a 101 checkout after yet another 180.
Wright won two games to threaten a recovery but Chisnall hit some big scores in leg eight to win his second Grand Slam match.
"I had to compose myself after the nine-darter because I was shaking a little bit," he told Sky Sports.
"I played well in practice and I felt very confident going up there and it was a good game. Peter came back at me very well but I've always done all right against him on the telly."
Andy Fordham's return to televised darts hit an emotional high as he knocked Wayne Jones out.
Fordham looked nervous at first but scored well and raced into a 4-0 lead as the Wolverhampton crowd chanted his name throughout.
Jones rallied to 4-2, his opponent 'the Viking' clipping the bull wire as he attempted to check out 83, and an emphatic maximum made it 4-3 to Fordham, who had started to wobble slightly.
But a vital 100 left Fordham 106 for the match and he took out treble 20, 6 and double top for the game.
Every leg went with the darts in Martin Adams' 5-4 win over Jelle Klaasen, who paid the price for his inability to hit doubles in a mixed performance.
Klaasen actually outscored Adams by an average of 11 but Adams' resilience, combined with some poor shots and bizarre mid-leg play by the Dutchman at times conspired to give the Wolfman the win.
Mervyn King picked up his first victory of the competition, winning 5-2 against Scott Mitchell, who exits as a result.
King burst into a 2-0 lead only for Mitchell to fight back with a break in leg four but it was a short-lived revival.
King broke back, taking out D12 for a 78 and then made it 4-2 after taking out 83 with a superb finish of 17, T16, D9.
The vital seventh leg went to King with a big maximum paving the way for another break and the points.
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Michael Smith provided an exhibition of finishing in his 5-3 win over Adrian Lewis, who was 3-1 up at one stage of the game.
Smith hunted down targets of 96, 74 and 88 to turn the contest on its head and pick up a vital victory.
Michael van Gerwen was again in inspired form, blasting his way to a 5-1 win against Kim Huybrechts to all but book his place in the knockout stage.
The 'Green Machine' was superb from start to finish and an excellent 130 checkout, finishing with an effortless bullseye, summed up the high quality of his performance.
Steve Beaton recovered from a 2-0 deficit to record his first win of the tournament at the expense of Ian White.
Beaton started the match slowly but hit a real purple patch and completed his comeback with a 64 finish in leg seven.
Mark Oosterhuis sustained his second successive whitewash of tournament, losing 5-0 to Steve West.
Evening session results: Steve West 5 Mark Oosterhuis 0, Ian White 2 Steve Beaton 5, Wayne Jones 3 Andy Fordham 5, Mervyn King 5 Scott Mitchell 2, Adrian Lewis 3 Michael Smith 5, Michael van Gerwen 5 Kim Huybrechts 1, Jelle Klaasen 4 Martin Adams 5, Peter Wright 2 Dave Chisnall 5.
