PDC World Darts Championship Round-Up | Ricky Evans edges James Wade in tie-break thriller after David Munyua's African fairy-tale comes to an end

On a hugely dramatic afternoon of darts at the 2026 PDC World Darts Championship, Ricky Evans has taken a dramatic 3-2 tie-break victory over James Wade in an Ally Pally thriller.

Ricky Evans came through a breathless five-set battle to defeat James Wade 3–2, sealing victory with a 99 checkout on his eighth match dart after a relentless deciding-set tussle.

The match swung repeatedly. Evans had earlier missed six match darts, while Wade also passed up chances to close the contest, including a missed dart at double top. The tie-break itself delivered constant momentum shifts, with Evans breaking throw via a stunning 144 checkout before finally pinning tops to bring an end to a truly gripping encounter.

Wade forced the deciding set after a dominant fourth set in which he averaged significantly higher, but Evans responded under pressure when it mattered most, surviving a sequence of missed doubles to book his place in the next round.

The remarkable World Championship story of David Munyua ended in the afternoon session as Kevin Doets claimed a straight-sets 3–0 victory.

Doets controlled much of the contest, taking the opening two sets with composed finishing, despite a raucous atmosphere backing the Kenyan trailblazer. Munyua briefly reignited the crowd when he broke throw to stay alive in the third set, but Doets quickly shut the door, closing out the match to end Munyua’s historic run on the Alexandra Palace stage.

Gabriel Clemens delivered one of the afternoon’s biggest surprises with a 3–0 victory over Wessel Nijman, punishing a series of missed doubles to maintain control throughout the match.

Nijman showed flashes of scoring power, including ton-plus finishes, but crucial missed set darts proved costly as Clemens consistently capitalised to close out each set and progress in straight legs

Earlier in the session, Madars Razma defeated Darren Beveridge 3–1. Razma raced into a two-set lead with heavy scoring and clinical finishing before Beveridge mounted a late response. The Latvian regrouped in the fourth set, however, sealing the win on double six to safely move through.