• World Darts Championship

Lewis battles past Anderson in pulsating final

Adrian Lewis showed his resilience © PA Photos

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Adrian Lewis hit a stunning nine-dart finish on his way to becoming the youngest winner of the PDC World Darts Championship by beating Gary Anderson 7-5 at Alexandra Palace.

Lewis looked to be cruising to the title when he powered his way into a 6-3 lead, but Anderson ensured a nervous finish by battling back to 6-5.

The 25-year-old kept his composure, however, calmly clinching the final set to write his name into the sport's history.

Lewis, the least experienced of the pair, poured scorn on suggestions that he would be overawed by the occasion by dominating the first set. The high point was a nine-darter in the third leg - the first in a World Championship final - that sent a pointed message to Anderson about the size of the task he faced.

Lewis reinforced the point by continuing his dominance in the second set, triumphing 3-0 with a flawless display of high scoring and lethal finishing. Even at such an early stage, Anderson appeared to be on the ropes - but he recovered with a whitewash victory in the third frame, peaking with a 130 checkout in the second leg.

Lewis earned himself some breathing space by battling his way to the fourth set, punishing Anderson for his inability to find doubles. He couldn't repeat the feat in the fifth, however, as Anderson clawed it back to 3-2 after surviving three missed attempts at a finish in the fourth leg.

And he fought back to square things up at 3-3, landing a decisive blow by snatching one against the throw in the fifth leg. He had never looked like hitting the bull up to that point, but he landed one right in the middle to close out the leg in style - and heap the pressure onto Lewis.

'Jackpot' swatted away the Anderson comeback by restoring his lead at 4-3, before restoring a two-set cushion by clinching a dramatic eighth. He lost the opening leg, but hit straight back with a 97 checkout against the throw, then went on to close out the frame.

Anderson was unable to stop the bleeding at the start of the ninth - losing the first leg against the throw - as the match appeared to slip out of his grasp. Lewis pulled 6-3 ahead, taking him one set away from the title, but Anderson delayed the coronation by hitting back to 6-4 with his best darts of the final.

For the first time in the match, Lewis was beginning to wobble under the weight of the occasion. He couldn't find a double in the 11th leg - the scoring was good, but the finishing was anything but - and Anderson, growing in confidence, hit back to 6-5. But Lewis held his nerve to close out the win in style.

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