Damon Heta, displayed some clinical finishing in a 6-3 defeat of Gabriel Clemens and will now meet Fifth seed Nathan Aspinall who battled his way to a 6-4 victory over Mervyn King.
Former winners Michael van Gerwen and James Wade will collide in Salzburg on Saturday night after coming through their first round ties at the Cazoo European Championship.
Four-time winner Van Gerwen averaged over 100 in seeing off Boris Krcmar 6-2 on Friday night as 2018 champion Wade came through a last-leg decider against Adam Smith-Neale, while world number one Gerwyn Price also made it safely through to the last 16.
Seeking a first ranking title of 2021, Van Gerwen dominated his meeting with Croatia’s Krcmar, pinning six of his 11 double attempts and landing a 128 checkout in a comfortable win.
“In the beginning I think I played really well,” Van Gerwen reflected. “I think I controlled the game and my focus was there, my confidence was there and that made me win this game.
“That’s one done and now it’s on to the next one. The format suits my game, from here on I think I can do some more damage. I feel comfortable, my game is starting to get somewhere and I hope I can continue the good form.
“I’m playing James Wade tomorrow. I think I can show some more, my feeling is really nice and we’ll see what is going to happen.”
It was a less straightforward passage through for world number four Wade as he recovered from 4-2 down to edge past debutant Smith-Neale.
With Smith-Neale waiting on 100 for the match, Wade found a last dart double five in the deciding leg to avoid joining Peter Wright in a shock early e
Eight first round matches took place at the Salzburgarena on the second night of the £500,000 tournament, as World Champion Price laid down a marker by averaging 104.53 in his 6-2 defeat of Ritchie Edhouse.
Like Van Gerwen, 2019 European Championship runner-up Price took control of the tie from the start, and was on target with 50% of his checkout attempts to deny Edhouse a way into the game.
“It was a steady performance and I did the right things at the right times,” said Price. “I wasn’t under much pressure but I was pretty steady today.
“It’s a longer format now and I’ll be more comfortable. I’m playing well and I just need to be on my A-game.
“I’m happy with the performance and I can build from that – if I want to win this tournament, I have to play a bit better.”
Price’s second round assignment will see him take on 19-year-old Czech star Adam Gawlas, who enjoyed a 6-4 debut win over Joe Murnan.
In-form duo Ryan Searle and Danny Noppert will meet in the second round after victories over Michael Smith and Krzysztof Ratajski respectively.
World Grand Prix quarter-finalist Searle went some way to avenging his World Matchplay loss to Smith as he averaged 101.9 in a 6-5 win, having trailed 3-0.
“In that last leg I just wanted to hit the tops and not mess about, and luckily enough it went in,” Searle admitted. “A couple of years ago I may have given up at 3-0, but I dug in.
“When I was 3-0 down I was thinking that if I could get it back to 3-2 at the break I had a chance. I hadn’t travelled this far to give up, and I showed I’m here for the long haul.”
Noppert, a World Grand Prix semi-finalist last week, continued his fine form with a 102.31 average in a convincing 6-2 win over Ratajski
2021 Cazoo European Championship
Friday October 15
Evening Session
First Round x8
Adam Gawlas 6-4 Joe Murnan
Danny Noppert 6-2 Krzysztof Ratajski
James Wade 6-5 Adam Smith-Neale
Nathan Aspinall 6-4 Mervyn King
Ryan Searle 6-5 Michael Smith
Michael van Gerwen 6-2 Boris Krcmar
Gerwyn Price 6-2 Ritchie Edhouse
Damon Heta 6-3 Gabriel Clemens
Saturday October 16
Afternoon Session (1345 local time, 1245 BST)
Second Round x4
William Borland v Joe Cullen
Brendan Dolan v Rob Cross
Jose de Sousa v Luke Humphries
Ryan Searle v Danny Noppert
Evening Session (2000 local time, 1900 BST)
Second Round x4
Nathan Aspinall v Damon Heta
Gerwyn Price v Adam Gawlas
Michael van Gerwen v James Wade
Mensur Suljovic v Florian Hempel
Sunday October 17
Afternoon Session (1345 local time, 1245 BST)
Quarter-Finals
Evening Session (2000 local time, 1900 BST)
Semi-Finals & Final
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