Evans beats Wade in thriller while Munyua exits

James Wade, the seventh seed, lost a thrilling tie to fellow Englishman Ricky Evans to fall back in a fourth successive second-round at the PDC World Championship.

In the fifth set, world number 43 Evans eventually won it 6-4 after two match darts in the final set.

Since Wade is currently the highest-ranked seed, 14 of the 32 players have been eliminated, along with Wessel Nijman’s loss earlier on Monday.

German Gabriel Clemens, who reached the semi-finals in 2023, defeated Dutch 31st seed Nijman in straight sets.

In another instance, Kenyan debutant David Munyua was unable to build on his shock victory over Mike de Decker in round one, allowing only two legs in a 3-0 defeat over Kevin Doets.

Wade won the first-round match for the fourth time at Alexandra Palace, making it his first win since 2022, when he advanced to the semi-finals.

The 42-year-old faced Evans twice from a set back, going 2-0 up in legs in the decider before forcing a tie-break, which required two clear legs to win.

In the fifth leg, Evans broke Wade’s throw, and despite the left-hander’s immediate response with a clinical 94 checkout to end the match, he made sure he did it by breaking once more before finishing with a 99 finish.

One of the highlights of the tournament so far has been Munyua’s first-round victory over De Decker, who was the 18th seed and former World Grand Prix champion.

The 30-year-old, who works full-time as a vet, enjoyed a lot of support in the first stages of his campaign against Dutchman Doets after another entertaining walk-on.

Munyua performed three 180-degree swings in the opening set, but Doets was able to move ahead and take the pressure off.

Luke Humphries, the 2024 world champion and number two seed, will play in the second-round on Monday evening, which will start at 19:00 GMT.

In round three of the PDC World Championship match will Humphries face 71-year-old Paul Lim, who became the oldest player to win the event earlier in the competition. Clemens will take on Humphries.

From 19: 00 GMT: