Japan Darts Masters 2015: Results, Updated Fixtures, Draw and More
Phil Taylor came out on top at the inaugural Japan Darts Masters on Sunday as he beat Scotsman Peter Wright 8-7 in a thrilling final.
Osanbashi Hall in Yokohama played host to two days of top-quality action, which saw Taylor, Wright, Gary Anderson, Michael van Gerwen and a clutch of quality names taking to the oche. The unique format saw eight PDC players take on local stars in the first round on Saturday, with the Japanese players all falling at the first hurdle.
Sunday then began with four intriguing quarter-finals, before Wright and Taylor were both taken to deciding legs in their last-four clashes with Anderson and Van Gerwen respectively.
Read on for a full recap of the tournament action and daily results from the Far East.
Schedule and Draw Details
1 of 3
Saturday
Round 1
Michael van Gerwen 6-0 Chikara Fujimori
Stephen Bunting 6-1 Shintaro Inoue
Adrian Lewis 6-0 Sho Katsumi
Peter Wright 6-1 Haruki Muramatsu
Phil Taylor 6-2 Masumi Chino
Raymond van Barneveld 6-4 Katsuya Aiba
Gary Anderson 6-2 Yuki Yamada
James Wade 6-2 Morihiro Hashimoto
Sunday
Quarter-Finals
Michael van Gerwen 8-5 Stephen Bunting
Adrian Lewis 4-8 Peter Wright
Phil Taylor 8-3 Raymond van Barneveld
Gary Anderson 8-1 James Wade
Semi-Finals
Peter Wright 8-7 Michael van Gerwen
Phil Taylor 8-7 Gary Anderson
Final
Phil Taylor 8-7 Peter Wright
Sunday Recap
2 of 3
Quarter-Final Results
Michael van Gerwen 8-5 Stephen Bunting
Adrian Lewis 4-8 Peter Wright
Phil Taylor 8-3 Raymond van Barneveld
Gary Anderson 8-1 James Wade
Semi-Final Results
Peter Wright 8-7 Michael van Gerwen
Phil Taylor 8-7 Gary Anderson
Final Result
Phil Taylor 8-7 Peter Wright
Phil Taylor claimed victory in the inaugural Japan Darts Masters in Yokohama after a fascinating 8-7 triumph over Peter Wright in the final.
The 16-times world champion eased past Dutchman Raymond van Barneveld in the quarter-finals before being run close by Gary Anderson in the last four.
He looked to be cruising to victory against Scotland's Wright, opening up a 7-2 lead to move within one leg of the title. But an incredible fightback from Wright saw him level the match at 7-7 before Taylor eventually won the deciding leg.
The opening to Sunday's final at Osanbashi Hall saw the two players trade blows, as Taylor took a 2-0 lead only for Wright to level with his own back-to-back legs.
However, the 54-year-old Taylor then found his groove, winning five consecutive legs and scoring heavily—his most remarkable finish of 120 taking him to 5-2.
In the 10th leg, the Stoke-on-Trent-born legend missed two match darts before Wright finally got another leg on the board with a 108 checkout.
The century finishes kept on coming for the Scot, as he landed a 121 for 7-4 and then a 129 to move within two legs of Taylor.
He levelled the match at 7-7 with a nerveless tops finish with Taylor waiting on 32. All the momentum looked to be with Wright, especially as the veteran missed two more match darts in the final leg.
However, the 45-year-old could not land 156 to seal an extraordinary turnaround, and Taylor stepped up to take out double 10 and seal yet another title in his glorious career.
It was a fitting finale to a fantastic event that was very well supported by the local fans, per darts commentator Stuart Pyke.
The crowd had been treated to some sumptuous play before the final on Sunday, as both semi-finals also went to a decider.
Wright had taken out world No. 1 Michael van Gerwen in his last-four encounter with a 141 finish in the last leg, prompting emotional celebrations, conveyed by Live Darts.
It was a great spectacle with a fitting winner, as Taylor proved, once again, that he still has what it takes to beat the world's best.
Saturday Recap
3 of 3
Round 1 Results
Michael van Gerwen 6-0 Chikara Fujimori
Stephen Bunting 6-1 Shintaro Inoue
Adrian Lewis 6-0 Sho Katsumi
Peter Wright 6-1 Haruki Muramatsu
Phil Taylor 6-2 Masumi Chino
Raymond van Barneveld 6-4 Katsuya Aiba
Gary Anderson 6-2 Yuki Yamada
James Wade 6-2 Morihiro Hashimoto
Those in attendance in Yokohama were treated to eight engrossing Round 1 matches on the opening day of the Japan Darts Masters, with all of the seeded players qualifying for the quarter-finals at the expense of native players.
As we can see here courtesy of Matthew Porter of the PDC, the darts fanatics in attendance were providing a rowdy backdrop as the action got underway:
"If you think the @Japan_Darts crowd might be a bit reserved,make sure you watch tonight on @itv4 to be proven wrong! pic.twitter.com/4HLMshIw9h
— Matthew Porter (@MattPorter_PDC) June 27, 2015"
Phil Taylor was the star attraction, and he had no problem getting past Masumi Chino in his tournament opener, romping to a 6-2 win. It was a victory that sets up a tantalising quarter-final clash between his old nemesis Raymond van Barneveld, who was made to work hard for a 6-4 victory over the impressive Katsuya Aiba.
As we can see here courtesy of PDC announcer John McDonald, Taylor was a popular figure with the supporters in attendance.
Stephen Bunting was the first man on stage, and he provided an early sign of the chasm in class between the seeded and unseeded players here. The Liverpudlian romped to a 6-1 win over Shintaro Inoue, booking a quarter-final place with top seed and tournament favourite Michael van Gerwen; the Dutchman proved to be far too strong for Chikara Fujimori, racing to a 6-0 whitewash.
Adrian Lewis also progressed without dropping a leg in his clash with Sho Katsumi. As we can see here, courtesy of the tournament’s official Twitter feed, the two-time world champion has been in tremendous form in the buildup.
Admittedly, a lot of these Japanese players were expected to be beaten heavily. But there were some who could have potentially caused a shock, particularly Morihiro Hashimoto and Haruki Muramatsu, who have played at World Cups against a lot of these players previously.
But again, the step up in class proved to be a little too much. James Wade saw off Hashimoto 6-2 to set up a tie with Gary Anderson in the last eight of the competition; the reigning world champion also made easy work of his opener, getting the better of Yuki Yamada by the same scoreline.
Muramatsu, meanwhile, finished off the session, and as we can see here, he was subject to the performance of the day.
Peter Wright played magnificently throughout this match, and his quarter-final outing against an in-form Lewis is certainly one to keep an eye out for when the action resumes on Sunday.
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