World Grand Prix 2014: Taylor eases past Beaton, Wade impresses against Smith

Phil Taylor got his bid for a 12th World Grand Prix title under way with a comfortable 2-0 victory over Steve Beaton in Dublin.

The Power’s performance was patchy throughout, but he did not need to be at his best to see off the challenge of his veteran opponent.

Despite a couple of slow starts at the ‘double-in’ event, Taylor eased through the first set without dropping a leg as Beaton was unable to score heavily enough to trouble his rival.

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Beaton did manage to pinch the first leg of the second set as Taylor squandered four darts at the double.

But any thoughts of a comeback were quickly dispelled as Taylor responded by moving up a gear, closing out the contest with finishes of 121 and 84.

“It’s a hard format and the first round is always difficult,” Taylor told Sky Sports. “I thought I was alright once I was off, I was steady although not quite right.”

Taylor will next face Andrew Gilding who produced a solid display to beat Darren Webster 2-0 in the opening match of the night.

Two-time champion James Wade was impressive as he swept aside Andy Smith 2-0.

Wade & Anderson impress

The left-hander produced a 15-dart leg against the throw and was clinical on double-top both at the start and finish as he took the first set without dropping a leg.

Smith took the opening leg of the second as he hinted at a comeback, but Wade came roaring back to take the next three in dominant style to seal a comfortable success.

Gary Anderson also put in a high-class display as he beat home favourite Brendan Dolan 2-0, finishing with an average of nearly 99.

The Scot took the first set by three legs to one and then broke at the start of the second with a brilliant 11-darter before holding his own throw twice to progress in some style.

Kevin Painter saw off Andy Hamilton 2-1 to book his spot in the next round, the Artist dominating the first set and clinching it with a 74 checkout.

But he went badly off the boil in the next, needing ten darts to find a double in the first leg and then 12 in the second. That allowed Hamilton to cruise two ahead and he levelled things up by taking out 25 in the next.

But an excellent 82 checkout then saw Painter break at the start of the third set and he would go on to claim the next two in clinical fashion to seal his passage.

Northern Irishman Mickey Mansell claimed a notable scalp as he beat world No. 16 Ian White 2-0, while Scotland’ s Robert Thornton overcame Justin Pipe by the same scoreline.

Adrian Lewis could, and perhaps should, have been knocked out in the first round by Daryl Gurney, who missed the Bull then two darts at double eight for the match before Lewis pinched a final leg decider to go through 2-1.