Michael Smith battles past Madars Razma to keep World Championship hopes alive despite not being at his best

Michael Smith is into the last 16 at the World Darts Championship despite some difficulty. He defeated Madars Razars 4-1 in sets, but it certainly did not come easy.

For much of the match, Smith threw an average of around 90, as many as ten points lower than in his previous match against Kevin Doets, which was also won with difficulty (3-2).

Especially in the fourth set, Smith escaped major trouble. After 'Bullyboy' made up an 0-1 deficit, Razma had several chances to make it 2-2. The Latvian led 2-0 in the fourth set, but missed two chances on tops in the fourth leg of that set to sign for the equalizer. Smith eventually took advantage with a 15-darter and a 46 check-out, bringing the score to 3-1.

Only in the fifth set did Smith really show his class. With an 11-darter he made 1-1, before Smith managed to break his opponent with an 80 finish. Then the reigning world champion closed with a 13-darter. The Englishman will face the winner of the duel between Chris Dobey and Ross Smith in the fourth round.