Peter Wright has been eliminated from the PDC World Championship after suffering a 4-1 defeat to Kim Huybrechts.
Despite winning the first set, Wright struggled for long periods against his Belgian opponent, who did not need to play his best darts to progress through to the last 16.
While both players averaged 91 in a match which featured just seven 180s, Huybrechts performed better at the pivotal moments to end Wright's defence of the world crown that he won at the beginning of the year.
However, Raymond van Barneveld was unable to pull off a similar shock versus Gerwyn Price, the five-time world champion instead losing 4-0 to the top seed.
Price started strongly, hitting his first four attempts at double, and it set the tone for the remainder of the contest as checkouts of 125 and 147 from Van Barneveld proved to be irrelevant.
Although Price's level dropped off during the closing stages, the Welshman was able to finish the match with a 128 checkout, ending with a 93.68 average.
THE ICEMAN FREEZES OUT BARNEY! ❄️
— PDC Darts (@OfficialPDC) December 27, 2022
It's a first ever televised win over Van Barneveld for Price, who seals a whitewash success in STYLE!🤩
The Welshman sending a message to the rest of the field there...
Up next 👉 Wright v Huybrechts#WCDarts | R3
📺 https://t.co/37DNuuK5Me pic.twitter.com/wQpJX05eMp
The clash between Jim Williams and Gabriel Clemens proved to be the match of the evening, Williams missing one match dart before seeing the 25th seed prevail by a 4-3 scoreline.
Williams will feel aggrieved to have lost after averaging 98.45 and registering a remarkable 65% checkout rate, but Clemens averaged 112.08 in taking the decider.
In the afternoon session, the showdown between Josh Rock and Nathan Aspinall lived up to its billing, 21-year-old Rock prevailing by a 4-3 scoreline in a match which featured 25 180s.
After Rock hit a 141 checkout to edge the first set in a decider, Aspinall took control with a 2-1 lead, but Rock regained his rhythm to move back into a one-set lead at 3-2.
Aspinall hit three successive 15-darters to take the match into a one-set shootout, one which was largely dominated by Rock as he moved into a 2-0 advantage.
However, despite hitting an 11-darter to save the match, Aspinall squandered three darts at doubles to take the match into a tie-break, allowing his Northern Irish opponent to step in and conclude a thriller with a 95.92 average in comparison to Aspinall's 98.19.
Dimitri van den Bergh is also through to the last 16 after defeating Krzystof Ratajski by a 4-1 scoreline, a checkout percentage of 52.18% the standout feature of his performance.
Meanwhile, seventh seed Jonny Clayton got the better of Brendan Dolan in a match which saw every set go the distance, the Welshman prevailing by a 4-1 scoreline.
Darren Plant
