Durrant edges out Van Gerwen in battle of World Champions in breathtaking display

Durrant continues to show that he belongs in the PDC and he produced in one of the best matches ever seen on the Winter Gardens stage.

Van Gerwen looked poor at the start akin to his recent form but started to play to his best again shunning all the critics who have questioned whether he is the dominant player he was. Despite that it was Duzza who came through and he will play James Wade in the Quarter-Finals.

To begin the tie, Van Gerwen despite not being at his best went 2-1 up but a gripping opening stanza saw Durrant go into the first break 6-4 with a two leg cushion with the Teesside ace averaging 102 to 99 from MVG who played well to defy the critics despite being behind.

Durrant moved 8-5 in front capitalising on a slip from Van Gerwen but from there was hit by a barrage from Mighty Mike who piled in a 134 checkout to make it 8-8. This was a game-changer with MVG going into the lead again at 9-8 but 'Duzza' restored parity at 9-9.

Despite that, Van Gerwen went back into the lead but a tie-break was forced with a brilliant 112 checkout. MVG's poor doubling came back to haunt him and Durrant went on the brink of the win at 11-10.

It continued though and a clutch 13-darter from Van Gerwen saw him break back and become favourite once again. An 84 checkout when it looked like Durrant was potentially falling away saw him go on the brink himself and he produced a double 20 to claim a breathtaking victory.

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Second Round
Michael Smith (96.72) 12-10 (92.98) Max Hopp
James Wade (93.86) 13-11 (92.91) Mensur Suljovic
Gary Anderson (94.95) 8-11 (94.88) Mervyn King
Michael van Gerwen (98.67) 11-13 (99.33) Glen Durrant

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