Jim Williams denies Peter Wright in Hungarian Darts Trophy as Whitlock makes it six in a row over Van Gerwen
Simon Whitlock secured a sixth straight win over Michael van Gerwen to reach the Last 16 of the Hungarian Darts Trophy in Budapest, as Jim Williams produced an inspired comeback to defeat Peter Wright.
Van Gerwen and Wright were among the ten seeds to crash out on a dramatic day of Second Round action at the BOK Sportcsarnok on Saturday.
Top seed Van Gerwen squandered a staggering 25 darts at double as his winless run against Whitlock continued, with Australia’s World Cup winner registering a nerveless 13-darter in the decider to progress.
Meanwhile, Wright was left to rue two missed match darts in an edgy conclusion against Williams, who fought back magnificently from 5-3 down to advance.
Wright, making his first appearance since undergoing gallstones surgery last month, conjured up 160 and 145 finishes to seize the initiative, but skin-saving 125 and 100 checkouts catapulted Williams to an unlikely victory.
Jose De Sousa landed a sublime 11-dart break to clinch a last-leg win over Raymond van Barneveld, after the Dutch legend wired one match dart at double 18 in a dramatic finale.
The opening ten legs went with throw, yet De Sousa – who missed double 12 for a nine-darter in leg four – followed up his sixth 180 by pinning tops to prevail with a 99 average.
De Sousa will now lock horns with Jeffrey De Zwaan on Sunday, after the Dutchman fired in five 180s to topple Rob Cross 6-4 and preserve his European Championship qualification hopes.
Boris Krcmar also claimed a crucial win in his bid to qualify for October’s main event, winning five straight legs to stun second seed Luke Humphries and set up a showdown with Dave Chisnall on Sunday.
Chisnall produced two sensational finishes to deny Clayton earlier in the afternoon, following up a 117 checkout in leg nine with a brilliant 135 finish on the bull to seal the deal in style.
Joe Cullen returned to winning ways on the European Tour courtesy of a battling 6-4 win over Martin Lukeman, while Nathan Aspinall defied a late rally from Stephen Bunting, punishing a profligate display from the St Helens star to close out a comfortable 6-3 success.
Earlier in the day, Josh Rock registered a superb 104 average to secure his first victory over Damon Heta, reeling off four consecutive legs from 4-2 down to dump out the Australian number one.
Emerging star Rock will now take on tenth seed Dirk van Duijvenbode, after the Dutchman also averaged 104 to prevail in a high-quality contest against Chris Dobey, registering six maximums along the way.
Michael Smith stormed through to Sunday’s final stages with a whitewash win over Daryl Gurney, taking out 116 and a double-double 96 finish to move through to face William O’Connor.
The Irishman secured his spot in the Last 16 on the European Tour for the first time since 2019 courtesy of a 6-3 win against an out-of-sorts Dimitri van den Bergh.
Rusty-Jake Rodriguez produced his best performance on the big stage to dispatch UK Open champion Danny Noppert with a 99 average, and he now plays Madars Razma on Sunday, after the Latvian received a Bye following Gerwyn Price’s withdrawal.
Ryan Searle was another seeded casualty on Saturday afternoon, succumbing 6-3 to Czech star Karel Sedlacek, who wrapped up victory with a brilliant 126 finish to move through to a tie against Aspinall.
Elsewhere, Krzysztof Ratajski’s woes on the European Tour continue, after Poland’s number one was edged out by Ryan Meikle, who now plays Whitlock on Sunday afternoon.
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Hungarian Darts Trophy 2022 Day Two Results
Saturday September 3
Second Round
Afternoon Session
Damon Heta 4-6 Josh Rock
Danny Noppert 1-6 Rusty-Jake Rodriguez
Ryan Searle 3-6 Karel Sedlacek
Dirk van Duijvenbode 6-3 Chris Dobey
Michael Smith 6-0 Daryl Gurney
Krzysztof Ratajski 4-6 Ryan Meikle
Dimitri Van den Bergh 3-6 William O’Connor
Jonny Clayton 5-6 Dave Chisnall
Evening Session
Rob Cross 4-6 Jeffrey de Zwaan
Jose de Sousa 6-5 Raymond van Barneveld
Luke Humphries 3-6 Boris Krcmar
Joe Cullen 6-4 Martin Lukeman
Peter Wright 5-6 Jim Williams
Michael van Gerwen 5-6 Simon Whitlock
Nathan Aspinall 6-3 Stephen Bunting
