Kyle Anderson and Rhys Mathewson delighted the Sydney crowd with victories over Raymond van Barneveld and James Wade respectively, whilst Phil Taylor began the defence of his title with a hard-fought win against Corey Cadby at The Star on Thursday evening.

Kyle Anderson was in sensational form as he reeled off six consecutive legs to defeat five-time world champion Raymond van Barneveld 6-1. Van Barneveld hit a maximum and converted a 71 checkout to open his account, but ‘The Original’ responded superbly, averaging just shy of 100 to set up a quarter-final clash with Michael van Gerwen.

Van Gerwen produced the performance of the day as he eased past New Zealand number one Cody Harris, with a 107.89 average. The Dutchman made a blistering start and was averaging 126 after three legs, but Harris reduced the arrears to 3-2. However, MvG was not to be denied, taking out finishes of 84, 72 and 71 to secure an emphatic 6-2 victory.

Rhys Mathewson caused the shock of the tournament, as he fought back from 5-2 down to dump out eight-time major winner James Wade.

Wade looked to be heading for a comprehensive victory, but the 28-year-old from Melbourne capitalised on ‘The Machine’s missed match darts to force a last-leg shootout. In the deciding leg, Mathewson registered his fifth maximum and pinned tops, to seal a brilliant comeback victory on his TV debut.

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Phil Taylor will begin the defence of his Ladbrokes Sydney Darts Masters title against Australia’s emerging star Corey Cadby, whilst world number one Michael van Gerwen will take on New Zealand’s Cody Harris, when the PDC World Series of Darts event kicks off at The Star on Thursday.

Taylor is yet to taste defeat in Sydney, having won all three of the tournament’s previous stagings. Nevertheless, the 56-year-old will face a tough test in the shape of Cadby. The 21-year-old Tasmanian has won an impressive seven DPA titles this year, and will be relishing the prospect of making his televised debut against ‘The Power’.

World number one Michael van Gerwen will take on New Zealand’s number one Cody Harris, who impressed in this year’s World Cup of Darts.

Van Gerwen could face his Dutch compatriot Raymond van Barneveld in the quarter-finals, although Van Barneveld has been handed a very tough draw against world number 30 Kyle Anderson. Anderson defeated the Dutchman 6-5 in Sydney two years ago, although the five-time world champion will be hoping to avenge that defeat this time around.

Australia’s number one Simon Whitlock will lock horns with eighth seed Peter Wright, who is yet to go beyond the quarter-finals of any World Series event in 2016. Elsewhere, Adrian Lewis, the 2015 Auckland Darts Masters winner, faces the experienced Kiwi Rob Szabo, twice a PDC World Championship qualifier.

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