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Wade edges Thornton as both hit nine-darters

James Wade saw off Robert Thornton 3-2 © Getty Images

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James Wade moved into the quarter-finals of the World Grand Prix with a 3-2 victory over Robert Thornton as the pair made history by both hitting nine darters in Dublin.

Before Wednesday's second round match at the Citywest Hotel, Brendan Dolan had been the only player to have landed a televised nine-darter from a double start when he did so in his World Grand Prix semi-final against Wade, no less, three years ago to the day.

There were to be two more within 30 minutes of one another, however.

Wade, having taken the first set on a deciding leg, opened the second with a 160 and 180 before taking out 161 on the bull. He then took out 156 to go 2-0 up in the set, only for Thornton to come back and take it 3-2.

Thornton won the third set by the same scoreline and then hit his own nine-darter in the second leg of the fourth set. By scoring 160, 180 and 161, Thornton ensured this would be the first match where both players had achieved perfect legs, made even more remarkable given the double-start format.

The Scot missed four match darts, however, with Wade taking the fourth set 3-2 before winning the deciding set 3-1 to continue his bid for a third World Grand Prix title.

"The first one here [Dolan's nine-darter in 2011] was hit against me," Wade told Sky Sports. "I'm a contagious disease of nine-darters.

"I'm just glad to move on to the next game and play how I can. After playing a game like that, it doesn't get any harder."

He added of Thornton, who went to his mother's funeral earlier in the day: "For him to do what he just did there - there is no man in darts that has got a bigger heart than Robert."

There was more drama earlier in the night, with Kevin Painter producing a remarkable comeback from two sets down to beat Adrian Lewis 3-2 in a sudden-death leg.

Lewis took the first two sets 3-2 only for Painter to secure a whitewash in the third before winning the fourth on a deciding leg from 2-1 down, after Lewis had missed a match dart at the bull.

Painter landed his eighth 180 of the match in the deciding leg to seal a quarter-final spot.

In the penultimate match of the night, Phil Taylor survived a scare after going a set down to seal a 3-1 win against Andrew Gilding.

Gary Anderson then did the same, coming from a set down to see off Mickey Mansell 3-1, winning the last six legs without reply.

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