Gerwyn Price shone bright in Riyadh on night one of the Saudi Arabia Darts Masters
Gerwyn Price shone bright in Riyadh on night one of the Saudi Arabia Darts Masters
Gerwyn Price delivered the moment of the night on the opening day of the Riyadh Season Saudi Arabia Darts Masters, firing in a sensational 170 checkout, while Man Lok Leung wrote his name into the history books with a landmark victory in Riyadh.
The first-ever staging of the Saudi Arabia Darts Masters began on Monday evening at the Global Theater, and former World Champion Price was one of the standout performers as the tournament made its long-awaited debut.
Price hits top gear in Riyadh
Price produced a dominant display against PDC Asian Tour winner Alexis Toylo, racing to a convincing whitewash victory. The Welshman averaged in excess of 100, pinning six of his ten darts at double, with a stunning maximum checkout providing the highlight.
“It took me a few legs to settle, but after the 170 I felt much more comfortable,” said Price.
“I want to start the season strongly and winning here would mean a lot. I’m also chasing that nine-darter!”
Price now faces a mouth-watering quarter-final clash with Luke Humphries, after the world number two closed out a 6-2 win against Japan’s Ryusei Azemoto.
Humphries admitted he was not at his fluent best, but was pleased to progress.
“It was a bit of a mixed performance,” he said. “I struggled early on, but it’s a solid start. Everyone wants to be the first name on this trophy, and that’s the goal.”
Leung creates Saudi Arabia darts history
The biggest talking point of the night came courtesy of Man Lok Leung, who defeated former UK Open champion Danny Noppert to record the first-ever PDC match win on Saudi Arabian soil.
Leung made a blistering start, opening with an 11-darter and surging into a 3-0 lead before sealing a deserved 6-3 victory. The Hong Kong ace will now meet Nathan Aspinall in the quarter-finals.
“I’m very happy with how I played on stage,” said Leung. “To win the first match here is really special for me.”
Aspinall booked his place in the last eight with a commanding 6-1 success over Lourence Ilagan, averaging 100.93 in a polished display.
Van Gerwen marches on
Fresh from his Bahrain triumph, Michael van Gerwen showed no signs of slowing down, sweeping aside Indian qualifier Nitin Kumar 6-1.
The three-time World Champion produced a ruthless performance, finishing 74, 92 and 102 to continue his impressive World Series run and remain on course for back-to-back titles.
Van Gerwen will now meet Stephen Bunting, who also progressed with a 6-1 win, seeing off Tomoya Goto to set up a blockbuster quarter-final.
Littler and Van Veen set up blockbuster clash
Elsewhere, Luke Littler and Gian van Veen both advanced to the last eight, setting up a repeat of their recent World Championship final.
Littler brushed aside Singapore legend Paul Lim 6-1, replicating his victory over the 71-year-old from the Bahrain event earlier in the week.
“This is a completely new experience for us,” Littler said. “I felt good on stage, and it would be amazing to win the first event here.”
Van Veen continued his strong form with a 6-2 win over Motomu Sakai, responding to a brief comeback by rattling off three straight legs to close out the contest.
Finals Day awaits
The quarter-finals, semi-finals and final will all take place on Tuesday, as eight players remain in the hunt for the inaugural Saudi Arabia Darts Masters title.
Adding extra intrigue, a $100,000 bonus is on offer to any player who lands a nine-darter. Thanks to the Riyadh Season Bullseye, that prize could rise to $200,000 if the player then hits the bull with a single dart — the biggest nine-dart prize ever offered in PDC competition.
Gerwyn Price shone bright in Riyadh on night one of the Saudi Arabia Darts Masters
Man Lok Leung 6-3 Danny Noppert
Stephen Bunting 6-1 Tomoya Goto
Nathan Aspinall 6-1 Lourence Ilagan
Michael van Gerwen 6-1 Nitin Kumar
Luke Littler 6-1 Paul Lim
Gerwyn Price 6-0 Alexis Toylo
Luke Humphries 6-2 Ryusei Azemoto
Gian van Veen 6-2 Motomu Sakai
Tuesday January 20 (1900 AST, 1600 GMT)
Quarter-Finals
Michael van Gerwen v Stephen Bunting
Nathan Aspinall v Man Lok Leung
Gian van Veen v Luke Littler
Gerwyn Price v Luke Humphries
Best of 11 legs
Semi-Finals
Van Gerwen/Bunting v Aspinall/Leung
Van Veen/Littler v Price/Humphries
Best of 13 legs
Final
Best of 15 legs
All Tuesday’s matches to be played in Draw Bracket order.
