Darts results: Gary Anderson sparkles as Michael van Gerwen and Nathan Aspinall also win
A review of Tuesday night's Unibet Premier League action in Milton Keynes, featuring victories for Gary Anderson, Michael van Gerwen and Nathan Aspinall.
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Flying Scotsman too fast for Smith
Gary Anderson showcased his new darts in style as he thrashed his former protege Michael Smith to get the Premier League season back under way behind closed doors in Milton Keynes.
In a repeat of last month's World Matchplay semi-finals at the Marshall Arena, the Flying Scotsman once again came out on top at the same venue with a 7-3 victory in which he averaged 109.24 and missed just one dart at a double.
Bully Boy also weighed in with a superb average of 107.02 but that owed everything to his powerful scoring, including seven maximums compared to Anderson's three, rather than his woeful finishing.
Smith missed 13 of his 16 attempts at the outer ring and that proved costly as the two-time champion picked up his third win of a campaign that has been on hold since March.
A stunning 124 checkout in the second leg got Anderson back on track after a sluggish opener and he maintained the momentum in a match that would have thrilled a crowd.
"It's a very good start," said Anderson. "Compared to how I've been playing I'm over the moon with how that went - the darts were going a lot better than in the World Matchplay.
"I've played with this design before. The darts felt right, the straight barreled darts were slipping out of my hand but the scallop on these means I can get them in the same place every time."
"Michael missed a few doubles but when he did, I was there on his tail and took them out."
Van Gerwen unplugs the Voltage
Michael van Gerwen bounced back from a disappointing World Matchplay campaign as he claimed his fifth win of the Premier League season with an easy 7-2 victory over a struggling Rob Cross.
The five-time champion, who is bidding to lift this trophy for a fifth year in a row, suffered a shocking second-round exit to Simon Whitlock on this stage last month but on this occasion he adapted to the surroundings in imperious fashion.
Van Gerwen averaged 103.37 compared to Voltage's poor 89.48 while he hit all three 180s in the match and pinned seven of his 19 doubles as his opponent missed six of his eight.
The Dutchman, who beat Cross in last year's final, also hit the high finish of the match with a classy 87 on the bullseye.
While MVG's attempts to maintain his 100% record of topping the regular season table is firmly back on track, Cross is now just one point ahead of Daryl Gurney with two matches to play before the bottom player is relegated on Judgement Night.
"This is good for my confidence and I'm pleased," said Van Gerwen, who is top on legs difference from Glen Durrant.
"I had a massive disappointment at the World Matchplay but to come back and do this is a massive step forward. I've invested a lot of time into my practice routine and this is something I can build on.
"I was dominant and did the right things at the right moments. My scoring power was there and I feel good, but there is more in the tank."
Duzza denies Snakebite
Glen Durrant pinched the last leg of his clash with Peter Wright to earn a crucial draw in his debut Premier League season.
Duzza had been enjoying the longest ever table-topping spell by default since March and although this result sees him slip off the summit tonight, he may later look back on this night as a point gained.
The four-time PDC major semi-finalist, who beat Snakebite en route to the last four of the World Matchplay here last month, was starring defeat in the face at 6-5 down when he missed three darts at double with 40 remaining but was given a remarkable reprieve when the world champion hit double 17 with 57 left before a costly miscount preventing him having a shot at a match-winning double.
Durrant made no mistake as he pinned two 10s for a 16-darter which increases his impressive tally to 10 points from seven games.
The three-time Lakeside champion averaged 102.43 compared to Wright's 99.96, hit two more 180s with three and pinned six of his 19 attempts at the outer ring.
Snakebite lacked consistent scoring power but he made up for it with some sparking finishing, including a 170 checkout in the sixth leg inbetween two other big finishes from 108 and 120.
Wright, who only spurned two darts at double, is level on eight points with fourth-placed Anderson and behind only on leg difference.
"I felt I was in charge of the match but I'm playing the World Champion and he's a phenomenal player, as he showed with the 170 finish," said Durrant.
"My scoring was good but I need to work on a little bit of finishing. I'm glad I'm off and running and I've got a huge game on Wednesday against Michael van Gerwen.
"I feel good going into one of the biggest nights of my life - playing the best player in the world is what darts is all about. The winner goes top of the league and I'm super-excited about the game."
Asp gives Iceman a frost bite
Nathan Aspinall consolidated his hopes of a top-four finish in his maiden Premier League season by inflicting a potentially damaging 7-4 defeat on Gerwyn Price.
The debutant, who beat John Henderson, MVG and Glen Durrant before lockdown, had to stage a superb comeback from 3-1 down to chalk up his fourth victory of the campaign.
Aspinall's average of 97.82 was slightly higher than Price's 96.33 and while they both hit a single 180, the Stockport man's finishing was far superior as he pinned seven of his 13 double attempts and his opponent missed 15 of his 19.
The Iceman started well enough but fell away alarmingly when the 2019 UK champion fought back and his superb 132 checkout to complete a 12-darter in the 10th leg was too little too late.
Aspinall's match-winning 12-darter was finished off from 108 and afterwards he said: "I love playing Gezzy, he brings the best out of me but without a crowd it's hard for players like us. He struggled, I struggled at the start but I dug deep.
"I've worked on a few things since the World Matchplay to try and play the game at my best, and to get the two points that secure me in the second phase of the Premier League season is great.
"I've learned a few things from tonight and hopefully I can kick on. I threw some good stuff at times and I got the win, which was the most important thing."
Price, who finished bottom of the table at Judgement Night in his maiden season back in 2018 before finishing fifth last year, is level on points with Rob Cross and just one ahead of Daryl Gurney.
SuperChin gets back up
Daryl Gurney's eight-month wait for a first Premier League win of the season is over after a 7-2 win over Chris Dobey that revives his hopes of avoiding elimination on Judgement Night.
SuperChin looked seemingly down and out having picked up two draws from his six games by the time the coronavirus brought the world to a standstill and was three points adrift of both Rob Cross and Gerwyn Price in the race for survival.
But with his closest rivals both losing earlier in the night, Gurney closed the gap to just one as he swept Dobey aside in a low-quality affair.
The Northern Irishman averaged just 86.88 compared to Dobey's 79.01, hit a solitary maximum and converted seven of his 19 darts at doubles.
His opponent, who was initially supposed to be performing in front of a partisan crowd in Newcastle, didn't do himself justice and missed 12 of his 14 darts at double.
"I put myself under a lot of pressure and I've got the win so I've given myself a chance now," said Gurney.
"Practice-wise I'm playing better than ever so I'm disappointed with how I played. It wasn't the way I wanted to win - I wanted to play well and I'm not taking my practice game onto stage.
"I'm only a point now behind Rob and Gezzy and I've given myself a chance. If I can get a result against Nathan Aspinall then I can put the pressure on, and hopefully I can put a good performance in."
Table, night seven results & night eight fixtures
2020 Premier League Darts Table
- Van Gerwen P 7 W 5 D 0 L 2 LegD +13 Pts 10
- Durrant P 7 W 4 D 2 L 1 LegD +11 Pts 10
- Aspinall P 7 W 4 D 1 L 2 LegD +5 Pts 9
- Anderson P 7 W 3 D 2 L 2 LegD +3 Pts 8
- Wright P 7 W 3 D 2 L 2 LegD +1 Pts 8
- Smith P 7 W 3 D 1 L 3 LegD +0 Pts 7
- Price P 7 W 1 D 3 L 3 LegD -3 Pts 5
- Cross P 7 W 1 D 3 L 3 LegD -7 Pts 5
- Gurney P 7 W 1 D 2 L 4 LegD -7 Pts 4
Night Seven, Tuesday August 25
Marshall Arena, Milton Keynes
TV Channel: Sky Sports (1900 GMT)
- Michael Smith 3-7 Gary Anderson
- Michael van Gerwen 7-2 Rob Cross
- Nathan Aspinall 7-4 Gerwyn Price
- Chris Dobey (C) 2-7 Daryl Gurney
- Peter Wright 6-6 Glen Durrant
Night Eight, Wednesday August 26
Marshall Arena, Milton Keynes
TV Channel: Sky Sports (1900 GMT)
- Gary Anderson v Gerwyn Price
- Nathan Aspinall v Daryl Gurney
- Michael Smith v Rob Cross
- Michael van Gerwen v Glen Durrant
- Peter Wright v Jeffrey de Zwaan (C)