"It's just getting ready for the big next step": Smith looks ahead to bumper Sunday at Grand Slam of Darts after Cullen epic

Michael Smith showed superb mental strength as he came back twice to defeat Joe Cullen in a sudden death thriller at the Grand Slam of Darts where he will face Raymond van Barneveld.

Speaking post match, he discussed his thought process going through the comeback and how at certain points he knew that he had the advantage.

"11-9 down and 15-13 down, I looked at the case and seen the kids and said it's now or never. You've got to try and play and when he hit the 180, I thought if you check the 70 out now to go 15-14 you won't play well in the next leg. You've got to do as he's hit two 180's, it's his throw and he's got to start well. Checked it out and he didn't have the best of legs. The last leg I went to the case again, let him think about it, it's 15-15. Come back up and rest is history," said Smith post match.

"The way my double 20 was going, he would have expected a shot but I pulled it out of my a**e from somewhere and it went in. All I knew was if I could break him, 15-14 without a bad leg I'd win the match."

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Now comes a bumper Sunday with likely two games in a day potentially for Smith and it's all about turning a decent year into a winning one.

"I've had a decent year. I can't moan, there's players ranked behind me who haven't done that. I've had the experience being in the semi-finals a lot this year then getting into the final and it's just getting ready for the big next step but I've got to get there first."