Lihao Wen secured his first victory of the current PDC China Premier League campaign on Tuesday, edging out league leader Xiaochen Zong to claim the Night Four spoils.
Wen – a finalist on Nights Two and Three – avoided a third consecutive defeat in a decider, recovering from 4-3 down to deny Zong a third victory in the space of four nights.
Reigning champion Zong has dominated the domestic circuit over the last 18 months, and he tops this year’s table at the halfway mark, ahead of Wen and Night Two winner Xicheng Han.
The format of the PDC China Premier League evolved last year to replicate the Cazoo Premier League, with eight players competing across eight nights of action.
Following the conclusion of Night Seven, the top four players in the league table will progress to the Play-Offs, and the winner will qualify for the 2023/24 Paddy Power World Darts Championship.
Wen boosted his hopes of Alexandra Palace qualification with victory on Night Four, winning through an entertaining nine-leg affair against his World Cup partner Zong in Tuesday's showpiece.
Wen raced into an early 2-0 lead before Zong won four of the next five legs to seize the initiative – aided by an 11-dart hold in leg three.
The pendulum swung once again as Wen fired in a skin-saving 106 checkout to force a last-leg shoot-out, where he then conjured up a 13-dart break of throw to scoop a precious five league points.
The 40-year-old has been the epitome of consistency in this year’s edition, having breezed through to a third consecutive final with successive 5-1 wins against Chengan Liu and Bin Zheng respectively.
Zong, meanwhile, overcame Han in a hard-fought quarter-final tie, before whitewashing Zhiwei Lin to add three points to his league tally, taking his overall total to 13.
Wen’s exploits saw him overhaul Han and move into second spot, with the pair now on 11 and 10 points respectively, ahead of Zheng in fourth position.
The PDC China Premier League returns for a double-header on Saturday August 26, with Nights Five and Six set to be broadcast through PDCTV for all subscribers worldwide, with the action commencing at 1300 CST (0600 BST).
PDC China Premier League
Night Four - Tuesday August 15
Quarter-Finals
Xiaochen Zong 5-3 Xicheng Han
Zhiwei Lin 5-4 Zhou Bu
Lihao Wen 5-1 Chengan Liu
Bin Zheng 5-3 Hailong Chen
Semi-Finals
Xiaochen Zong 5-0 Zhiwei Lin
Lihao Wen 5-1 Bin Zheng
Final
Lihao Wen 5-4 Xiaochen Zong
2023 PDC China Premier League
Event Dates
August 26 - Night Five (0600 BST)
August 26 - Night Six
August 27 - Night Seven (0600 BST)
August 27 - Play-Offs (semi-finals & final)
Competitors
Xiaochen Zong
Xicheng Han
Chengan Liu
Bin Zheng
Lihao Wen
Zhiwei Lin
Hailong Chen
Zhou Bu
Format
League Nights - best of nine legs
Play-Offs - semi-finals best of 19 legs, final best of 21 legs
League Phase Point Scoring
Champion: 5 points
Runner-up: 3 points
Semi-finalists: 2 points
Top four at end of regular season will advance to Play-offs