Gary Anderson beats Dirk Van Duijvenbode to reach World Championship semi-finals
Two-time winner Gary Anderson is through to the semi-finals of the PDC World Championship after coming from behind to beat Dirk Van Duijvenbode at Alexandra Palace.
Anderson, the champion in 2015 and 2016, lost the opening set before surging to a 5-1 victory, averaging 101.07.
The Scot set up a last-four meeting with the winner of the Michael Van Gerwen-Dave Chisnall contest taking place on Friday evening.
𝘼𝙉𝘿𝙀𝙍𝙎𝙊𝙉 𝙃𝙄𝙏𝙏𝙄𝙉𝙂 𝙁𝙊𝙍𝙈
Gary Anderson seems to be finding his rhythm at the right time…
He's into the Semi-Finals, beating Dirk van Duijvenbode 5-1, averaging 101.07 in the process.
Is he destined for a third world title? pic.twitter.com/2kgGCDtPaW
— PDC Darts (@OfficialPDC) January 1, 2021
Anderson told Sky Sports: “That was good. First set Dirk went off like he did, and I played actually alright – I went ‘here we go’. But I stuck in.”
Asked if we were seeing the Anderson of 2015 and 2016, the 50-year-old said: “Not quite yet. It’s getting there.
“The 140s are coming good now. Still a few mistakes, but happy.”
He added: “If I wasn’t to win this title I’d love to see Chizzy (Chisnall) win it. He’s been on the go for years and he is a phenomenal darts player.”
𝙄𝙉𝙏𝙊 𝙏𝙃𝙀 𝙎𝙀𝙈𝙄-𝙁𝙄𝙉𝘼𝙇𝙎
Stephen Bunting is the first player into the Semi-Finals of the 2020/21 William Hill World Darts Championship, beating Krzysztof Ratajski 5-3.
His best run in this tournament! pic.twitter.com/l2kEh6qIEM
— PDC Darts (@OfficialPDC) January 1, 2021
The other match of the afternoon session saw Stephen Bunting defeat Krzysztof Ratajski 5-3 to move into the semis of the competition for the first time.
Bunting’s opponent in the last four will be either Gerwyn Price or Daryl Gurney.
