PDC World Championship

Chisnall shocked by Henderson, van Barneveld through

Rob Bartlett at Alexandra Palace

December 15, 2013

Dave Chisnall is out of the PDC World Championship after losing to John Henderson © Getty Images

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Dave Chisnall became the first major casualty of the PDC World Championship as the number seven seed was sensationally knocked out by John Henderson, while five-time winner Raymond van Barneveld enjoyed a comfortable victory over Jamie Lewis.

Henderson - who beat Chisnall in a Pro Tour event in Barnsley three weeks ago - led two sets to nil and looked set for a spot in the second round, but Chisnall produced a remarkable comeback against the odds to level up. However, Henderson rallied in a tense final set to claim a remarkable 3-2 victory.

Henderson made the perfect start with a 180 on his very first throw, which helped him break for the lead. However, after successive holds, Chisnall took a marvellous 83 on the bullseye to send the opener into a deciding leg. Despite an awful start, a 180 and 140 from 'Chizzy' set up 32, but Henderson finished a superb 122 on the bull for first blood.

The sweetest of finishes

John Henderson got his first win at Ally Pally © Getty Images

Following his sensational victory over Dave Chisnall, John Henderson described the win as the "best" of his career. He's also made the PDC World Championship second round for the first ever time.
Read John Henderson's reaction here

Henderson continued the onslaught in set two as Chisnall wasted chance after chance at a double. The Scot easily finished his first leg, before issuing a huge body blow to his opponent with an immense 132 finish with two bullseyes. Double nine was enough for Henderson to secure a two-set lead, with Chisnall having missed eight darts at double top.

Chisnall finished 18 with a last-ditch attempt at double four, but Henderson eased to level up in the third. An attempt at 129 went begging on double 18 for Chisnall and his opponent stepped up to break and move within one leg of the second round. However, a huge 150 from the St Helens ace left him on 36, which he saw off first time to break back. Equally as important, Chisnall checked out 121 on double 18 to stay in the match.

The world number seven capitalised on the swing of momentum, kicking off 180 before breaking throw. Henderson responded equally with 180 and 140 but a critical 99 checkout from 'Chizzy' on his favoured double 18 saved throw. The man in yellow hit a ninth 180 of the match, followed by a 140 and double 18 for the fifth straight leg to send the match into a deciding set.

Five soon became six consecutive legs for Chisnall with a vital 70 out - however, this time it was tops replacing his favoured 18. Henderson levelled with tops before Chisnall moved within a leg of the second round - the first time he had led all match. But three match darts passed him by and Henderson deservedly levelled.

At 2-2, a victor needed to win by two clear legs. Chisnall put pressure on by holding, before missing a fourth match dart on the bull to leave 25. However, Henderson took out his third ton-plus finish on 113 for 3-3 in the last before breaking the Chisnall throw. In a tense final leg, Henderson had his first shot for the match and finished tops with his final dart.

Van Barneveld encountered no problems in his first round encounter with Lewis, easing through with a 3-0 victory.

Lewis held throw in the first leg despite a roof-raising 180 and missed double from 'Barney', but the Dutchman won three on the spin - including a 14-darter - to take the first set.

A fifth straight leg put van Barneveld in firm control of the second set, but his opponent produced a timely 180 and two-dart 84 finish to stay in it. However, the five-time champion pounced on Lewis' missed double attempts to move into a comfortable two-set lead.

Despite the 22-year-old showing brief resistance in the third, Lewis could not prevent a whitewash as van Barneveld brilliantly finished 141 for the win.

Brendan Dolan reached the second round after beating Colin Osborne.

Dolan took out 118 to win the opening leg of the match, before landing double 12 and double 10 to claim the first set.

Trailing 2-1 in the second set, Dolan checked out a superb 167 on the bull to level, before hitting double 18 to double his advantage. Dolan then claimed a straight-sets win with double six to take the third set 3-1, and will now face Gary Anderson in the next round.

Elsewhere, Jamie Caven continued his recent spell of good form with a 3-1 victory over Jelle Klaasen. The Brit took the first two sets without dropping a leg, before the Dutchman hit back in the third with a mini-whitewash. However, Caven responded in typically consistent fashion to take the win.