Wednesday 31 December 2014 11:23, UK
Phil Taylor survived a scare to edge Kim Huybrechts 4-3 in the last 16 of the William Hill World Championship at Alexandra Palace.
Huybrechts raced into a 2-1 lead and, even after Taylor turned on the style to restore parity at 2-2, he then had his illustrious opponent firmly on the ropes in a deciding leg at 3-2.
But Taylor thrived on the drama and came through in the seventh set as Huybrechts finally folded.
"I never thought I was out because the final set is a tie-breaker," said Taylor, who averaged 102.52. "I'm over the moon, I really am.
“That was the first time I've thrown with those darts and they feel fantastic. I'm going to get better. Trust me."
The opening two sets went with throw but Taylor looked in trouble when a fired-up Huybrechts took the third with a 180 and double 16 finish.
‘The Power’ upped the ante in the fourth, racing to a 3-0 clean sweep, but Huybrechts responded with a sweep on his own thanks to a 12-darter and 124 checkout.
A missed double looked as though it could cost Taylor as Huybrechts forced the sixth set into a deciding leg, but the 54-year-old prevented his opponent from having a dart for the match, and he completely overpowered Huybrechts in the final set.
Despite the defeat Huybrechts was proud of his performance after pushing Taylor so close and vowed to come back better for the experience.
He said: "I played really well. I played with my heart, tried my hardest and gave Phil a good game. I'm going to be back."
Stephen Bunting was the final player to book a place in the quarter-finals after he recovered an impressive 4-2 victory over fellow St Helens native Michael Smith.
The reigning Lakeside champion raced in a 3-0 lead as he showed more composure on doubles, but Smith battled back in the fourth set with a 180 and 81 checkout.
Another seven-set thriller looked on the cards when Smith took the fifth set with superb finishes of 106 and 121 but Bunting kept his cool in the sixth, hitting double 16 to book a quarter-final date with Raymond van Barneveld.
