A nervous Nathan Aspinall stumbled into the World Darts Championship opener, edging out Leonard Gates on the same night as Christian Kist hit nine quarters in defeat.
Aspinall, who suffered a shock defeat at the same stage last year, almost avoided an upset this time around, sealing their lead after Christmas with a 3-1 win.
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Watch Nathan Aspinall's 3-1 win over Leonard Gates in their World Darts Championship second round match
Gates, who defeated a tearful Cameron Menzies in his first-round match on Monday, showed flashes of the first two sets before Aspinall eventually prevailed.
“I'm relieved to get through that,” said Aspinall, who will face Andrew Gelding, Martin Lookman or Nitin Kumar in the round of 32. “It was a very tough darts match.”
“I felt really good coming into the tournament but I put myself under a lot of pressure to perform tonight. I've been under a lot of scrutiny over the last few months because I haven't been playing well.
“I'm here to prove how good I am and go deeper into the tournament. It wasn't pretty, but I won the match and now I can enjoy Christmas and come back stronger after the break.”
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Watch the best action from night four of the World Darts Championship
The American made a 106 to break point in the first set, only for Aspinall to immediately top that with a 114 in the next round to take the opener.
But the 12th seed was very poor in losing the second set, averaging less than 80. Despite these difficulties, he had two arrows at the top to take a two-set lead, but was fouling his lines as the Jets instead leveled things up.
Aspinall improved slightly over the final two sets but survived some turbulent moments along the way, including refusing to throw a match dart as the Jets threatened to force a deciding set.
The two-time semi-finalist will know he will have to play much better if he is to make another deep run at Alexandra Palace.
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Who had the advantage between Aspinall and Gates ahead of their World Darts Championship second round match?
Kist makes nine amazing quarters but loses
Keast's nine-put was the 15th ever at a World Championship and the first since the famous “I Can't Talk” perfect leg from Michael Smith in the 2023 final.
But the Dutchman was unable to capitalize on his stunning moment to win the first set as his opponent Razma orbit He kept his cool and won the next three sets in style to set up a match against Dirk van Duijvenbode.
Kist won £60,000 for his quartet of nine, as did one lucky fan in the Ally Pally crowd, with tournament sponsors Paddy Power also donating £60,000 to Prostate Cancer to mark the moment.
“The nine-pointer was an amazing moment and hitting the double 12 was amazing. It was a lovely moment for everyone and I hope Chris enjoys the money,” Keast said.
“Maybe I'll go on vacation next month with the prize money. I lost the match, so I'm a bit disappointed to be knocked out in the first round.”
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'Fast' Ricky Evans won 3-2 over Gordon Mathers in the first round of the World Darts Championship.
Ricky Evans He was far from his 'fast' best when he put in the hard work in his opening match against Gordon Mathers, who had to take the final deciding set.
Evans finally got the victory to set up a second-round showdown with sixth seed Dave Chisnall when he carded a 109, his first over-the-ton finish in a sloppy encounter.
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Evans brings the audience to a rendition of “Merry Christmas, Everyone” for a very festive tour
In the opening match of the night, a nervous Jim Williams missed five darts en route to a 3-2 loss in his first round match against him. Paolo Nebreda.
To make matters worse for the Welshman, he also missed three darts to win the first set along the way. Ross Smith awaits Nebrida in the next round.
What's next?
It's another busy day on Thursday 19 December with the afternoon session returning, live on Sky Sports Darts from 12.30pm – the line-up reads as follows: Chris Landman vs Lok Yin Lee, Callan Reeds vs Romeo Grbavac, Martin Lookman vs Nitin Kumar and No. 27 Gabriel Clemens in a second-round match against Robert Owen.
From 7pm, live on Sky Sports Darts, former world champion Michael Smith headlines the evening session, facing 2023 champion and second seed Kevin Deutz to close out the night, while the previous three first round bouts include Nick Kenny v Stu Pontz, Mansur Suljovic v Matt Campbell And last year's semi-finalist Scott Williams vs. Nico Springer.
Who will win the Paddy Power World Darts Championship? Watch every match exclusively live until 3 January on the dedicated darts channel Sky Sports. Stream darts and more of the best sports with NOW.
