Luke Humphries survives scare at World Championship, while Van Gerwen sets up Last 16 clash with Anderson
Humphries, who won the event in 2024, was on the ropes at one point before battling back to beat Gabriel Clemens
Luke Humphries survived a scare against Germany's Gabriel Clemens before booking his place in darts' World Championship last 16.
Listen to this article
Humphries, the 2024 champion, was almost taken to a deciding set after a stunning fightback from Clemens at Alexandra Palace but held his nerve to edge through 4-2.
There was no hint of the drama to come as Humphries eased through the opening two sets and then took a tight third.
Yet a brilliant 125 checkout – bull, 25, bull – from Clemens in that third set sparked a revival which saw the underdog pull back to 3-2.
Read more: 'Battles of the Sexes’ sees Nick Kyrgios beat Aryna Sabalenka in straight sets
Read more: Cricket-based chain Sixes falls into administration
At 2-2 in the sixth set Clemens then had three darts to level the match but he was unable to take them and Humphries capitalised to finish the job.
He celebrated victory with a huge roar of relief, leaving Clemens – who averaged 101.49 – to reflect on what might have been.
Speaking afterwards, Humphries told Sky Sports: "When I had that double to go 3-0 up I thought I had control and I don’t feel like I dropped off.
"Gabriel got a lot better and really made me work hard for it. If that double hadn’t gone in and it had been 3-3, I'm panicking."
A crowd including Tottenham’s James Maddison and Ryder Cup golfers Shane Lowry and Tyrrell Hatton also saw three-time world champion Michael Van Gerwen beat Arno Merk 4-1.
The Dutchman, who averaged 99.7, produced some of his best play at the championship so far as he overcame the in-form German to set up a clash with Scottish veteran Gary Anderson.
Van Gerwen later claimed he had not been challenged and still had plenty of room for improvement.
He said: "Was it a contest? Not for me. I played too well today (for) him. We all know what he is capable of but I played good today.
"I think I had more in my power if I wanted to but I didn’t need it. Overall I think I played an OK game."
Earlier two-time champion Anderson, 55, maintained his impressive form by holding his nerve in the deciding set to beat Jermaine Wattimena 4-3.
Dutchman Wattimena saved four match darts in total, while Anderson missed double 12 for a nine-dart finish in the decider before sealing a thrilling win.
Rob Cross, another past winner, thrashed Damon Heta 4-0 to book a date with reigning champion Luke Littler while Devon’s Ryan Searle beat German number one Martin Schindler 4-0.Dutchman Gian Van Veen underlined his credentials with a 4-1 win over Madars Razma of Latvia.