2019 Brisbane Darts Masters - Day One

Kyle Anderson - Brisbane Darts Masters

DAY ONE of the Brisbane Darts Masters, in association with Pirate Life, saw Kyle Anderson upset the odds to set up an all-Australian quarter-final with Simon Whitlock, after he survived five match darts to beat Peter Wright.

The opening night of the PDC World Series of Darts event at the BCEC also saw Australia's Damon Heta defeat James Wade and Gary Anderson cruise past Corey Cadby.

In the night's most nerve-shredding contest, Kyle Anderson raced in to a 3-0 lead - taking out 110 and 156 in the process - as Wright struggled to find his form.

The Scot then fought back, winning five of the next six legs to move within a leg of the match as the night drew to a close in Brisbane.

Wright would go on to miss five match darts before Anderson pinned double 16 to claim a huge victory and set up another World Series clash with Whitlock, who secured a comfortable 6-1 victory over Brendon McCausland earlier in the night.

"That's a great win for me tonight," said Anderson, the 2017 Auckland Darts Masters winner. "I started really well and nearly let it slip away but I kept focused and got the job done.

"Everyone knows what goes on between me and Simon and we will both be ready to put on another good game."

Damon Heta - Brisbane Darts Masters

DartPlayers Australia number one Heta also caused a shock on day one in Brisbane, knocking out 2018 World Series Finals winner James Wade in a last-leg decider.

A massive 164 finishf from the Perth ace in leg ten with Wade throwing for the match and left on tops was the turning point of a game that could have gone either way.

The pair were level after four legs but Heta could easily have been 4-0 up only to be punished for 15 missed doubles, with Wade breaking throw and eventually opening up a 5-3 lead.

Heta put the pressure back on his opponent with a solid hold of throw, before his remarkable 164 finish levelled matters and gave the 31-year-old from Perth the chance to throw for the match.

Despite missing a total of 27 darts at a double, Heta eventually got over the line - but the Australian doesn't believe he is done just yet.

"I have put the hours in and I think the world is my oyster and I am just going to go for it," said Heta, also a quarter-finalist in the 2018 Melbourne Darts Masters.

"There's no two ways about it, I consider myself a chance against anyone. At the moment I feel like I am playing well and I think there's more to come."

Gary Anderson put Corey Cadby to the sword, beating the young Australian 6-1 in Brisbane and set up a quarter-final match with Heta in the process.

Cadby opened the game by holding throw but that was as good as it got for the 24-year-old as Anderson kicked in to gear and won the following six legs.

The Scot averaged 101.68 during an impressive performance against a man many tipped to cause the two-time World Champion problems.

"The back feels good, the arm feels good and I'm practicing really well," said Anderson, a former World Series event winner in Perth.

"The first leg was poor from me which was strange because I was hitting 180's for fun in the practice room, but I managed to find the form in the end."

Rob Cross- Brisbane Darts Masters

Defending champion Rob Cross had to survive a huge scare as he came from 4-2 down to defeat James Bailey in a last-leg decider, taking out 110 to seal the win.

Cross, who paid the price for missing 21 darts at a double throughout the match, could have been home a lot earlier but every time he missed Bailey moved in to punish the former World Champion.

A dramatic final leg saw the Englishman land a key 177 before taking out 110 on double 16 to progress.

Despite those misses, Cross still averaged over 101 for the match and will face Raymond van Barneveld in the last eight, after the five-time World Champion began his final competitive trip to Australia with a 6-2 win over New Zealand World Cup star Haupai Puha.

The Dutch legend averaged 90, mainly due to a poor start to the game where he found doubles hard to find, but he eventually got over the line and secured his place in the last eight.

"It's been a while since I've been on stage and I started a bit slowly but for me I'm happy with the win and I'm really happy to be here in Australia," said Van Barneveld.

World number one Michael van Gerwen made light work of New Zealander Ben Robb, running out a 6-0 winner.

The World Champion was in control of the match from the start and dictated the flow of the match throughout.

Van Gerwen will be looking to put the disappointment of last month's early exit from the World Matchplay behind him by claiming yet another World Series title.

"I made a few mistakes but to be fair I can't really complain because I won 6-0 and that’s all you can do," said Van Gerwen, last year's finalist in Brisbane.

"I played with confidence and that is good so now I have to get ready for tomorrow against Daryl Gurney."

Gurney will be looking to stop the Dutchman after he survived a late mini comeback from Koha Kokiri to confirm his place in the quarter-finals with a 6-4 victory.

With Gurney leading the encounter 5-2, the Northern Irishman missed four match darts to give Kokiri hope.

The former Oceanic Masters winner then won back-to-back legs to put the pressure on his opponent but Gurney managed to hold throw and progress.

"I started really well but got a bit nervous and let him back in so I'm just pleased to get over the line," offered Gurney after his victory.

The 2019 Brisbane Darts Masters will conclude on Saturday as the remaining eight players will do battle before a winner is eventually crowned.

The final night of action will be broadcast live on Fox Sports across Australia and worldwide through the PDC's international broadcast partners, as well as through PDCTV-HD for Rest of the World Subscribers (outside of the UK, Ireland & Netherlands).

UK TV coverage on ITV4 will be from 7pm BST.

2019 Brisbane Darts Masters, in association with Pirate Life
Friday August 9

First Round
Raymond van Barneveld 6-2 Haupai Puha
Daryl Gurney 6-4 Koha Kokiri
Damon Heta 6-5 James Wade
Simon Whitlock 6-1 Brendon McCausland
Rob Cross 6-5 James Bailey
Michael van Gerwen 6-0 Ben Robb
Gary Anderson 6-1 Corey Cadby
Kyle Anderson 6-5 Peter Wright

Saturday August 10 (1900 local time)
Quarter-Finals
Kyle Anderson v Simon Whitlock
Damon Heta v Gary Anderson
Rob Cross v Raymond van Barneveld
Daryl Gurney v Michael van Gerwen

Semi-Finals
K Anderson/Whitlock v Heta/G Anderson
Cross/Van Barneveld v Gurney/Van Gerwen

Final
v
All best of 15 legs