World Matchplay
because deep down inside I know I’m going to come through this bad
patch, and I’ll give it my all.”
Dave Chisnall and Andy Hamilton played out a close match although it
was ultimately St Helens that prevailed over Stoke as Chizzy claimed a
spot in the quarter finals with a 13-10 victory.
Chisnall’s reward was to be a quarter final clash with Michael van
Gerwen after the Dutchman made light work of defeating Ian White
13-4.
Stephen Bunting’s debut campaign came to an end in the second round
as Gary Anderson continued his impressive form to notch up a 13-8
victory.
The Scotsman raced into a 5-0 lead and despite Bunting claiming half
of the remaining legs he was never able to claw back the gap.
The quarter final line-up was completed by Adrian Lewis who defeated
Mervyn King 13-8 to set up a mouth watering clash with Gary Anderson.
Quarter Finals
None of the quarter finals proved to be as close as perhaps they could
have been, although Michael van Gerwen versus Dave Chisnall was the
closest.
The early exchanges proved to be very close in fact and the players
were level at 12 legs all heading in to the decisive moments of the
match, but whether through fatigue on his part or relentless pressure
from his opponent Chisnall began to fade.
Van Gerwen landed an impressive 129 checkout to move 13-12 in front
and he never looked back, reeling off the next three legs to reach the
semi-finals at Blackpool for a second successive year.
“At the minute I’m fighting, I’m battling and hanging in there. said van
Gerwen.”Dave tested me but I produced some great darts at the right
moments, especially the 129 finish to go 13-12 up.
“Dave was fantastic and he put me under pressure at the start but I
came back very strongly and I thought I dominated the game and was
the better player after that.
“I knew I had an extra gear, but fair play to Dave because he played
some great darts. He never gives anything away and that makes it even
sweeter to win this game.
“I’ve never won this tournament before and that’s my aim this week,
but this win means a lot to me and I’ve got to focus on the semi-final
now.”
Van Gerwen’s opponent for the semi-finals was to be Simon Whitlock
after the Aussie ace completed a 16-10 victory over James Wade.
Wade was in fact the stronger of the two players during the early
“At the minute
I’m fighting, I’m
battling and
hanging in there”
Michael van Gerwen