Jan van Veen overcame a scare against Cristo Reyes to claim a 3-1 victory at Alexandra Palace, taking his first win in his third attempt at the World Darts Championship.
Van Veen, ranked seventh in the world, entered the second night of Palace in style without a win on the big stage having lost to Man Lok Leung and Ricardo Pietrico in his previous two appearances, but this time he managed to fight for a win.
The Dutchman didn’t need to reach any particularly dizzying heights to finish the first set, averaging 92.26 points to keep Reyes at bay.
The second set was where Van Veen really came into his own, showing off his recent form with an incredible average of 107, helping him canter to a 2-0 lead.
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Cristo Reyes won the first game of the third set against Jan van Veen, scoring 167 points.
But Reyes didn’t back down and put the set on the board with a stunning 167 checkout and two slow breaks in the bullseye, taking the fourth set all the way and ultimately giving Van Veen a monumental victory in D16.
“We’ve finally crossed that line! I’ve struggled a lot on this stage over the last few years, but today I felt very relaxed and luckily it paid off,” van Veen told Sky Sports.
“Two years ago, when I was 2-0 against Man Lok Leung, he won 3-2. When Crist won the third set, I thought, ‘Oh, let’s go back to 2-2 and stop being nervous.’
“Fortunately, I started playing well in the final set when I was down 2-1, so I’m very happy.”
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Ross Smith won the third set against Andreas Harrison despite having a hornet on his shoulder during the leg.
Meanwhile, Ross Smith suffered a surprise defeat to Swedish debutant Andreas Harrison (50), wasting six darts and becoming the first seed to fall at this year’s World Championships.
The 12th-seeded Smith led 2-1 but failed to capitalize on his chances in the fourth set against Ally Pally Wasp, taking the match to a deciding set and being punished by Harrison, who won five straight legs en route to winning the fifth set itself.
Evans and Heta show class and showmanship with first round wins
Ricky Evans put on a solid performance, defeating Rock Leon 3-0 in the first round.
Rok Leung made his mark on Ally Parry in 2024 by defeating Van Veen in his debut, but was unable to repeat that feat upon his return.
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Evans explains why he hates gravy so much after winning first round of the World Darts Championship
Evans delighted the crowd with a festive walk-on to Shakin’ Stevens’ “Merry Christmas Everybody,” before thrilling the crowd with a dart, the highlight of a sensational 134 checkout to take a 1-0 lead in the first set.
Evans held his level in the second set, but Rok Leung picked him up and made it a real fight. The Englishman eventually overcame his fear and anchored the top, taking a 2-0 lead.
Despite Rok Leung breaking Evans’ throw and bringing the third set to the fifth leg, Evans scored his 11th 140 on his way to 84 points, sealing the match in D12.
Damon Heta put in a well-rounded performance, winning 3-1 against Steve Lennon.
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Damon Heta won the first set against Steve Lennon, taking 144 and 110 in consecutive legs.
‘The Heat’ lived up to its nickname in the first set, winning all three legs and comfortably earning 144 and 110 checkouts en route to a 1-0 lead. Lennon then rallied after the pair shared a break in the opening leg of the second set, but the Australian performed well with a 100 checkout to seal the deal and give Ally Pally’s faithful a showpiece.
Geta’s clinical finishing display was halted as Lennon fought back in the deciding leg to bring the scoreline to 2-1, but from there he was on the attack again, taking three legs on the bounce and closing out the fourth set en route to victory.
White and Searle get off to a winning start and cross sign victory with “Big Fish”
Former world champion Rob Cross made a strong start to his bid for a second world title with a straight-sets victory over Norway’s Col Dekker at Alexandra Palace on Friday afternoon.
Rob Cross averaged 90.84 points in a 3-0 win over Coe Decker.
The 2018 Sid Waddell Trophy winner only lost two legs in a one-sided fight with Decker, who struggled in the outside ring in his world championship debut.
Cross easily cruised through the first set on straight legs, took the second set in the decider of the final leg, and then produced a stunning finish, finishing with the first “big fish” 170 checkout of the tournament this year.
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Cross booked a spot in the second round with a stunning 170 finish against Decker
“I was a bit excited today,” Cross told Sky Sports. “I thought I was going to come out and be brand new, but that wasn’t the case. I’m really proud of myself. I’m happy to get the win and I’ve got a lot more in the tank. I’ve got a lot of fire in my belly. I think I’ll be better next game. I’m back!”
‘Voltage’ will next face Ian White, who took a two-set lead against fellow veteran Mervyn King for a dramatic 3-2 victory, while Niels Sonnefeld set up a second round match against former world champion Michael Smith after a 3-0 win over Haupai Puha.
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Niels Sonnefeld achieved a 158 finish en route to victory over Haupai Puha at the World Darts Championship
In the other match of the session, Ryan Searle defeated Chris Landman in straight sets, and the 17th-seeded ‘Heavy Metal’ will now face either Brendan Dolan or Tavis Dewdney in the next round.
What’s next?
The opening match of Saturday afternoon’s session will see Mario Vandenbogarde take on David Davis, which will be broadcast live on Sky Sports Darts from 12.30pm, with reigning world champion Luke Littler awaiting the winner.
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Highlights from Luke Littler’s winning start to his title defense against Darius Labanauskas at Alexandra Palace
Luke Humphries will headline the evening session from 7pm as Andrew Gilding plays Cam Crabtree, Luke Woodhouse takes on Boris Kurkumar and Gary Anderson moves on to claim his third world title against Adam Hunt.
Jeffrey de Graaf will take on the legendary Paul Lim, Wessel Nyman will take on Karel Sedlacek ahead of Humphries’ opener against Ted Ebbets, and former semi-finalist Gabriel Clemens will take on Alex Spellman in the final match.
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