Phil Taylor was forced to fight for his place in the 2nd Round of the German Darts Championship on a dramatic opening day in Berlin.
But Team Unicorn ace Gary Anderson had to withdraw from the tournament with an eye problem, Colin Lloyd hit a 9 darter, James Wade suffered a shock defeat and PDC Unicorn Youth World Champion James Hubbard stunned Adrian Lewis with a thrilling 6-4 victory over the World Champ in Berlin!
Anderson was suffering from blurred vision in one eye, so was left with no choice but to concede his match against Michael Barnard. He had been complaining of a problem since arriving in Germany and this will certainly be a concern for the Scot.
Lloyd’s 9 darter came in his last leg victory over Alex Roy, but Taylor had to really battle hard before overcoming Dutchman Jerry Hendriks 6-4.
Taylor now plays youngster Reece Robinson in the 2nd Round.
James Wade fell at the first hurdle in Berlin – beaten in a dramatic match by Mensur Suljovic. The Austrian averaged 102 and won the match 6-5. There will be a sense of big disappointment for Unicorn’s World No.3 who was tipped for a good run over the weekend at the German Darts Championship.
Elsewhere on Friday in Berlin, Michael Rosenauer thrilled the partisan home crowd as the German star won the all Unicorn affair against Andy Hamilton 6-4....he will now play Dave Chisnall.
Terry Jenkins beat Magnus Caris 6-3 to set up a 2nd Round meeting with John Part....Raymond van Barneveld was far from his best, but he was still too good for Mareno Michels and his 6-1 victory earned him a clash with Alan Tabern in round two.
Paul Nicholson will play Lloyd on Saturday after his 6-3 win over German Andree Welge. The Unicorn man averaged an impressive 104.
Wes Newton plays Steve Brown in the 2nd Round after ‘The Warrior’ secured a 6-4 win over William O’Connor....and Colin Osborne was another 1st Round winner. His 6-2 triumph over Darren Johnson means a 2nd Round match against Mark Webster.
But there was defeat for Unicorn’s Jamie Caven....he lost 6-4 to Irishman Michael Mansell.
Meanwhile Kevin Painter, who received a bye after the withdrawal of Team Unicorn youngster Keegan Brown, will play Dave Ladley in the 2nd Round.....Ladley saw off Denis Ovens on Friday in Germany.
By STUART PYKE
Photo courtesy Lawrence Lustig / PDC