Cristo Reyes had a magical nine-dart finish in the second round of the Austrian Darts Open, but Jan van Veen suffered a shocking early retirement.
Seven seeds packed into the Stadthalle on Saturday, where Reyes stole the headlines with a perfect leg in a win over Australian No. 1 Damon Geta.
The Spaniard has been a revelation since regaining his PDC Tour card in January, averaging 101.89 points and hitting six sub-180s in Austria, winning 6-4.
Reyes will face Danny Knoppert in the last 16.
Reyes reached the top with nine darts in the fourth leg, then defied a brave fightback from Heta to close out the match with an impressive 11 darts.
“I’m very happy,” Reyes said. He will face fifth seed Danny Knoppert for a spot in the quarterfinals. “I was even more nervous when I hit nine darts, but this is amazing. I want to thank this amazing crowd.”
Michael van Gerwen also impressed with a solid evening session, averaging 103.41 points and scoring three massive checkouts to defeat Krzysztof Ratajski 6-3 and begin his quest for a fifth Austrian Darts Open crown.
Van Gerwen will now set his sights on a showdown with two-time European champion Rob Cross, who defeated William O’Connor by the same scoreline in Saturday afternoon’s session.
Dutch superstar Van Gerwen was the highest-ranked player left in Graz after top seed Van Veen lost in the deciding final leg to Latvian No. 1 Madars Razma.
Van Veen crashed out, along with compatriot Wessel Nyman, who was blown away by a runaway Nico Springer in a battle between two of the sport’s most explosive talents.
Elsewhere, James Wade did a master job of crushing the expectations of Austrian icon Mensur Suljovic, averaging 103 darts and scoring a hat-trick with 11 darters in a commanding 6-2 victory.
Reigning champion Martin Schindler also pressed forward in convincing style, hitting six maximum shots and coming off a 2-1 drift with five straight legs to wipe out the struggling Peter Wright.
Kim Huybrecht continued her comeback with a sensational decision win over Chris Dobey, overturning a 5-4 deficit with a breathtaking 132 finish on the bull following a 10-darter break.
The Belgian will face Andrew Gilding in the last 16 after the 2023 British Open champion won 6-4 against former European Championship runner-up Jermaine Wattimena, averaging 100.92 points.
Ross Smith, who finished runner-up to Schindler in last year’s tournament, averaged over 102 against Niels Sonnefeld, while Luke Woodhouse also averaged over a ton with a 6-1 win over Rob Owen.
Northern Ireland’s World Cup champions Josh Lock and Darryl Gurney also made it safely through to final day with 6-3 wins over Patric Kovacs and Ian White respectively.
Josh Locke advances to last 16 in Austria
Kevin Doetts earned his first career win over Ryan Searle, scoring a draw with Ryan Joyce who handed Mike DeDecker his sixth straight loss on the European Tour. Danny Knoppert survived three match darts to defeat Alan Souter in a grueling final round to complete the last 16 line-up.
The Austrian Darts Open continues from 1200 BST on Sunday, with the remaining 16 players battling it out in the afternoon, before the tournament concludes with a large evening session with quarter-finals, semi-finals and finals.
Austrian Darts Open: Saturday results
Afternoon session
Andrew Gilding 6-4 Jermaine Wattimena
Ryan Joyce 6-3 Mike Decker
Rob Cross 6-3 William O’Connor
Kevin Doets 6-2 Ryan Searle
Ross Smith 6-3 Niels Sonnefeld
Cristo Reyes 6-4 Damon Geta
Luke Woodhouse 6-1 Rob Owen
Kim Huybrecht 6-5 Chris Dobey
evening session
Darryl Gurney 6 – 3 Ian White
Josh Locke 6-3 Patrick Kovacs
James Wade 6-2 Mensur Suljovic
Michael van Gerwen 6-3 Krzysztof Ratajski
Danny Knoppert 6-5 Alan Sarter
Madas Razma 6-5 Jan van Veen
Martin Schindler 6-2 Peter Wright
Nico Springer 6-0 Wessel Nyman
Austrian Darts Open: Sunday schedule
Round 3 (from 1200 BST)
Kevin Deutz v Ryan Joyce
James Wade v Luke Woodhouse
Kim Huybrecht v Andrew Gilding
Michael van Gerwen vs Rob Cross
Danny Knoppert v Cristo Reyes
Josh Locke v Nico Springer
Ross Smith v Martin Schindler
Madas Razma v Darryl Gurney
Evening session (from 1800BST)
quarterfinals
Semi-final
final
Who will win this year’s Premier League Darts? Catch the action every Thursday on Sky Sports until May 28th. Stream darts and other top sports now.
