WORLD CHAMPION Michael van Gerwen reached the last 16 of the European Darts Open with a 6-2 victory over Mark Dudbridge, while James Wade and Peter Wright triumphed with brilliant ton-plus averages on Saturday afternoon in Dusseldorf.
Van Gerwen produced a fine first performance in Dusseldorf with a 102.31 average in a superb display against Dudbridge, who has produced some excellent form over the last 12 months and defeated Jay Foreman in style in round one.
The crucial moment of his second round game came in the sixth leg, when the Bristol ace missed three chances to level at three legs apiece and van Gerwen made his opponent pay by taking out an 81 finish on the bullseye for a 4-2 lead.
The world number one then powered to victory, hitting a 150 checkout in the seventh leg followed by a 14-darter to book a third round tie against Jamie Caven, who defeated Stephen Bunting on Friday evening.
James Wade knocked out seventh seed Ian White with a 6-3 triumph with the aid of a 100.13 average, as he began his bid for a second European Tour title in a row following his success in Gibraltar a fortnight ago.
The seven-time major winner will now face fellow Englishman Adrian Lewis in a mouth-watering third round encounter to be played on Saturday evening, with the Stoke ace having overcome Benito van de Pas in a deciding leg on Friday night.
2013 Dutch Darts Masters winner Kim Huybrechts set up another eye-catching last 16 tie against Kevin Painter - who dropped just two legs in his impressive wins over Keegan Brown and Steve Beaton on Friday.
Belgian ace Huybrechts needed just 12 minutes to see off Dutch youngster Ryan De Vreede in a comprehensive display which featured a clinical 123 checkout.
Northern Ireland’s Brendan Dolan overcame a 3-1 deficit to defeat Jamie Lewis in a deciding leg and set up a last 16 clash against the in-form Aussie Simon Whitlock which will open up Saturday evening’s proceedings, with the world number four having ended Raymond van Barneveld's hopes in round two.
Peter Wright produced a brilliant display in defeating Michael Smith 6-1 with a stunning 111.29 average at the Maritim Hotel on Saturday afternoon.
The feature of Wright’s performance was back-to-back 11-dart finishes in moving 4-1 up before claiming the next two legs in 12 and 14 darts to reach the third round and a clash with Justin Pipe, who overcame Rowby-John Rodriguez 6-2.
Gary Anderson overcame the challenge of Wales’ Gerwyn Price with a 6-3 win after overturning a 2-0 deficit by taking six of the next seven legs and will now face Wes Newton for a place in the last eight in Dusseldorf.
Newton had been pushed all the way to an 11th leg by Dennis Smith on Friday night, before he progressed to keep alive his hopes of a second European Tour title.
Anderson's fellow Scot Robert Thornton was on the wrong side of a 6-4 scoreline after falling at the hands of Andy Smith, who won three straight legs from 4-3 down to knock out the former UK Open Champion.
Dave Chisnall ended German representation in the European Darts Open with a comfortable 6-2 win over Michael Rosenauer. The St Helens star hit checkouts of 120 and 150 during the contest and will now play Mervyn King, who was a 6-3 winner against Darren Johnson.
Saturday evening sees all the third round matches take place in draw bracket order before the £100,000 tournament concludes on Sunday afternoon with the decisive final session featuring the quarter-finals, semi-finals and final.
The European Darts Open will be streamed live online worldwide through the websites listed below.
Live Coverage
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Live Scores will be available through the PDC Live Scores Website, http://live.dartsdata.com .
European Darts Open
European Tour Event Six
Maritim Hotel, Dusseldorf
Friday July 11
Evening Session
Second Round - Seeds 9-16
Jamie Caven (16) 6-4 Stephen Bunting
Justin Pipe (12) 6-2 Rowby-John Rodriguez
Wes Newton (15) 6-5 Dennis Smith
Mervyn King (11) 6-3 Darren Johnson
Steve Beaton (9) 2-6 Kevin Painter
Adrian Lewis (10) 6-5 Benito van de Pas
Simon Whitlock (14) 6-4 Raymond van Barneveld
Andy Hamilton (13) 6-2 Darren Webster
Saturday July 12
Afternoon Session
Second Round - Seeds 1-8
Brendan Dolan (3) 6-5 Jamie Lewis
Dave Chisnall (6) 6-2 Michael Rosenauer
Ian White (7) 3-6 James Wade
Kim Huybrechts (8) 6-1 Ryan De Vreede
Peter Wright (5) 6-1 Michael Smith
Gary Anderson (2) 6-3 Gerwyn Price
Robert Thornton (4) 4-6 Andy Smith
Michael van Gerwen (1) 6-2 Mark Dudbridge
Third Round
Evening Session (7pm-11pm local time, 6pm-10pm BST)
Draw Bracket & Order of Play
Brendan Dolan v Simon Whitlock
Dave Chisnall v Mervyn King
James Wade v Adrian Lewis
Gary Anderson v Wes Newton
A Smith v Andy Hamilton
Peter Wright v Justin Pipe
Kim Huybrechts v Kevin Painter
Michael van Gerwen v Jamie Caven
Quarter-Finals
Draw Bracket & Order Of Play
Dolan/Whitlock v Chisnall/King
Wade/Lewis v Anderson/Newton
A Smith/Hamilton v Wright/Pipe
K Huybrechts/Painter v van Gerwen/Caven
All games are best of 11 legs
Second Round Match Information
Northern Ireland's Brendan Dolan edged out Wales' Jamie Lewis 6-5 to reach the last 16 in Dusseldorf. Dolan fell 3-1 to Lewis who made a bright start, which included an 11-darter, before Dolan won four of the next five legs to lead 5-4 and held his nerve in the deciding leg on double eight in the decider.
Dave Chisnall ended German hopes by defeating Michael Rosenauer with a comfortable 6-2 victory. The St Helens star hit checkouts of 120 and 150 in establishing a 4-0 lead before going on to seal victory with a 62 finish.
Seven-time major winner James Wade knocked out seventh seed Ian White with a 6-3 triumph following a fine performance in averaging over the 100 mark. The Aldershot star established a 3-1 lead courtesy of a break of throw in the third leg and maintained that advantage to knock out White.
Belgium's Kim Huybrechts raced into the last 16 of the European Darts Open in Dusseldorf with a 6-1 victory over Dutch youngster Ryan De Vreede . Huybrechts broke throw in the opening leg and hit a clinical 123 checkout to lead 4-0 before completing the demolition in just 12 minutes.
Peter Wright dismissed Michael Smith with a 6-1 win in a brilliant display on Saturday afternoon in Dusseldorf. The colourful Scotsman hit back-to-back 11-darters to move 4-1 up and won the next two legs in 12, and 14-darts to round-off a fine performance.
Gary Anderson recovered from a 2-0 deficit by taking six of the next seven legs to defeat Wales' Gerwyn Price 6-3 and will now face Wes Newton on Saturday evening for a place in the quarter-finals.
Andy Smith claimed a fine 6-4 victory to defeat fourth seed Robert Thornton out of the European Darts Open. In a tight contest Smith made the decisive move in the ninth leg by breaking Thornton's throw on double nine before converting a 68 finish to end the contest.
Michael van Gerwen produced a 102.31 average in his 6-2 victory over Mark Dudbridge to reach the last 16. The decisive moment of the game came in the sixth leg when Dudbridge failed with opportunties to draw level at three all and from then van Gerwen stormed away to victory, which included a brilliant 150 checkout.