Wade survives Ally Pally thriller

JAMES WADE reached the quarter-finals of the 2010 Ladbrokes.com World Darts Championships after coming through a nail-biting encounter against Andy Hamilton.

Hamilton had led 3-2 and missed a dart for the match in the final set which allowed James Wade to keep his hopes of World title glory alive and set up a clash with Simon Whitlock.

Hamilton started the better of the two players winning the first leg with the aid of the maximum. He hit another 180 in the second and landed double 10 to win the leg.

The Stoke star missed two darts at double 15 for the set in the third leg which allowed Wade to get off the board. But Hamilton wrapped up the first set in style in the next leg by converting a 140 checkout.

Wade hit back quickly in the second set, winning it by three legs to nil to level the match. He won the first leg against the darts and then won the second by hitting double nine and then sealed the set in the third leg after Hamiton missed five darts at doubles to keep the set going.

Hamilton made a winning start to the third set, breaking throw with the help of his fourth 180 of the game. He was off-target with two darts at double 16 for a 2-0 lead and Wade hit double 10 to level.

Wade then recorded an excellent 124 checkout to win the third leg but missed a dart at bullseye to win the set and Hamilton hit double five to force a deciding leg. The Aldershot man managed to take that with a pressure 65 finish with his opponent waiting on a two dart finish to lead for the first time in the match.

Both struggled to find the winning double in the first leg of the fourth set, but Hamilton managed to find double four for an early advantage. The 14th seed then produced some fabulous darts to seal the set. He hit a 12 darter to win the second leg, and hit a maximum in the third followed by double 10 to square the game at two apiece.

Wade gained an early lead in the fifth set by hitting a two-dart 74 finish to win the first leg and that was followed by a break of throw in the second by hitting his favourite double 10.

Hamilton defied a maximum from Wade to win the third leg and then won the fourth by hitting double eight after both players had registered 180s. And Hamilton continued the winning run of legs by hitting double 10 with his opponent waiting on 25 to regain the lead for the first time since the opening set.

The Premier League champion hit a 74 finish to win the leg of the sixth against the darts and soon won the second with 92. The third leg saw Wade hit a maximum to him in command and he hit double top to send the match into the decider.

Hamilton cashed in on three missed doubles from Wade by hitting a two-dart 64 to win the first leg. He was in control of the second but Wade produced a timely 129 checkout to get back into the set.

The Stoke man regained the lead after Wade was off-target with more double opportunities to win the third leg. The fourth saw Hamilton have a dart for the match but his attempt at double for a 156 checkout fell below the target and Wade made his opponent pay by converting a 64 finish to send the game into a tie-break situation.

As the tension rose inside Alexandra Palace Hamilton game seemed to dip and Wade won the fifth leg by hitting double top with his last dart to lead for the first time in the set. The world number three then converted a wonderful 112 checkout to end a dramatic contest.

"Obviously i'm very glad that Andy missed that dart at double 18 to win the match, admitted Wade. Sometimes its about winning ugly and fortunately I managed to do that."

"I don't feel that I ever found top gear out there and I know that I will need to up my performance if I am going to get past Simon Whitlock."