Gerwyn Price was fired up as he powered past Keane Barry in a 3-0 whitewash in the second round of the World Darts Championship at Alexandra Palace.
Barry was presented as a potential banana skin for the 2021 world champion but Price averaged 91.32 and took out nine 140s and a 180 in the contest, doing exactly what was needed in order to return after Christmas.
The Welshman will now face either Joe Cullen, Wessel Nijman or Cameron Carolissen in the third round.
Despite a reception of boos from the crowd, Price got off to an electric start and looked full of confidence, taking out a 112 checkout for the opening set and roaring as the tops finish went in.
He then backed that up with a 106 finish in the second set and, despite a leg on the board for Barry, managed to motor on and move 2-0 up on D10.
With doubles costing ‘Dynamite’ – the Irishman missed 22 in total – he suddenly then took out a spellbinding 144 checkout but Price stood firm and finally wrapped up a crucial win on tops, admitting post-match that the hunger for victory was strong.
“I probably wanted to win that match more than any other match in my life,” Price told Sky Sports.
Price was relieved to beat Barry 3-0 as he booked his spot in the third round of the World Darts Championship
“I wanted to enjoy Christmas, I just wanted to get a win and get home. It doesn’t matter how well or bad I played. I won 3-0 and another tournament starts after Christmas.
“The way I played, or the results I got, they have all been on the wrong end of the stick and losing some close games, missing doubles.
“Keane missed a load of doubles. I was nowhere near how I’ve been the last couple weeks.
“Like I said, it was just getting the win, enjoying Christmas not being a grumpy old so and so. I will be a lot better the next round.
“I’m just glad to get a win. I felt like I played well in parts in the game. I was trying a little bit too hard but that’s part and parcel of the first round. I’ve done that now, I can enjoy Christmas. I will be cooking Christmas dinner again and will enjoy doing it!
“I will come back a different animal. For me, this was a qualifying round to get into the World Championship. I split it up into two. I will come back after Boxing Day, raring to go.”
Leonard Gates danced his way onto the stage for his first-round meeting with Cameron Menzies
Leonard Gates put on a sensational show in a comprehensive 3-1 victory over Cameron Menzies, setting up a second-round clash with Nathan Aspinall.
The Ally Pally crowd were firmly behind the boogying American and their chants of “USA! USA!” only got louder as he took out 138, 120, then 85 on the bull to wrap up the opening set.
Gates took out 138 and 120 in the first two legs as he made a lightning fast start against Menzies
However, Menzies fought his way back into the match and got his first couple of legs on the board to take the second set to a decider, staying stoic early on under pressure to level the game at 1-1.
As the maximums continued to flow but doubles continued to be a problem for Menzies, the American took full advantage to go 2-1 up with three legs in quick succession and then broke Menzies’ throw in the fourth set to go one leg away from the second round.
With match darts in hand and the writing on the wall for the Scotsman, who got emotional on stage, Gates faltered but then finally took out a classy 122 to wrap up the match.
Menzies was visibly emotional after falling to a 3-1 loss at the hands of Gates
“That was a great game. Cameron played great. I played the best I could play against Cameron,” Gates told Sky Sports.
“The darts here are awesome! We have to use that energy and keep it going for the future.”
Connor Scutt hit successive ton-plus finishes as he continued to dominate Ben Robb in their World Darts Championship opener
Challenge Tour champion Connor Scutt put on a blistering display in a 3-0 whitewash against Ben Robb.
Scutt was on fire from the start as he averaged nearly 100 and hit trebles for fun, the New Zealand No 1 unable to get a foothold in the game.
There was just no stopping Scutt in the second set either despite Robb getting a consolatory leg on the board, 117 and 112 finishes giving the ‘Sniper’ the 2-0 advantage.
The third set continued in the same vein as the others and as Scutt wrapped up the match on tops, with four 180s and six 140s to boot, he sent a message to Damon Heta who he faces in the second round.
Robert Owen’s vital 121 checkout saw him reach the second round at Ally Pally for the first time
Robert Owen picked up his first Ally pally win in a dramatic 3-1 victory over Niels Zonneveld.
Zonneveld took the opening three legs to race into a set lead but the Welshman put on a fightback, a 101 checkout and break of throw levelling the match.
The two then continually kept breaking each other’s throw, Zonneveld finding some big finishes including aa sensational 155 and 125 on the bullseye, but Owen was in the zone to go 2-1 up.
With just one leg then needed to win the match, Owen finished off in the most stylish off fashions with a 121 finish on D14 for his match dart, setting up a match with former semi-finalist Gabriel Clemens in the second round.
What’s next?
Stephen Bunting joined Jamie Carragher on Monday Night Darts as they reviewed Carragher’s previous darts match against rival Gary Neville
We have another bumper day of action for you on Tuesday December 17 and you can watch it all live on Sky Sports Darts.
From 12.30pm, we have James Hurrell vs Jim Long, Kevin Doets vs Noa-Lynn van Leuven, Ryan Joyce vs Darius Labanauskas, and World Grand Prix champion Mike De Decker vs Luke Woodhouse.
Then from 7pm, we have Jeffrey de Graaf up against Rashad Sweeting, Ricardo Pietreczko facing Xiaochen Zong, Ryan Meikle playing Fallon Sherrock with a chance to face Luke Littler on the line, and Peter Wright vs Wesley Plaisier.
Who will win the Paddy Power World Darts Championship? Watch every match exclusively live from December 15-January 3 on Sky Sports’ dedicated darts channel. Stream darts and more top sport with NOW.
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