Grand Slam of Darts 2016: Thursday Scores, Results and Quarter-Finals Schedule

Gary Anderson defeated classy Danny Noppert at the 2016 Grand Slam of Darts in Wolverhampton, England, on Thursday night as the world champion made a strong comeback to win 10-9.

The Scotsman will play Raymond van Barneveld, who beat BDO kingpin Glen Durrant 10-7.

However, the best entertainment of the night came as rookie Chris Dobey advanced to the next stage by defeating Jamie Hughes in a titanic 10-9 battle, producing one of the matches of the year.

There was also victory for James Wade, who trounced Benito van de Pas, 10-2. The Machine looked uncomfortable at the oche as he limped back and forth on a bad foot, but the accuracy of his darts was not compromised.

Wade will meet Dobey in the quarter-finals.

Here are Thursday night's results:

Winner	Score	Loser
Chris Dobey	10-9	Jamie Hughes
James Wade	10-2	Benito van de Pas
Gary Anderson	10-9	Danny Noppert
Raymond van Barneveld	10-7	Glen Durrant

Here is the quarter-final bracket, per PDC Darts:

Thursday Recap

Anderson crept over the line as he defeated Noppert, but he had to recover from a 6-4 deficit as the Dutch wonder found the doubles with remarkable consistency.

Noppert checked out like a world-class veteran, but Anderson proved why he is a double world champion and one of the favourites for the title.

Anderson moved through the gears to take a 9-6 lead, but Noppert remained unfazed as he stood on the brink of defeat.

The BDO talent threw wondrous darts as he wrestled back three legs in a row to make it 9-9. However, the Flying Scotsman made no mistake as he closed out the match, claiming the slimmest of victories.

PDC Darts highlighted the end of the match:

Anderson said he should have won with more comfort, as PDC Darts shared:

Van Barneveld entered an almighty tussle with the BDO No. 1, but the Dutch master had too much in the looker when the heat was on.

Barney took a 5-2 lead, but Durrant squared the match at 5-5 to stun the veteran at the interval.

However, the multiple world champion was clean in his throwing and earned an 8-6 lead as he broke service.

Van Barneveld closed out the contest to claim a 10-7 win and set up a mouthwatering battle with the reigning world champion.

Dean Mouhtaropoulos/Getty Images

Dobey and Hughes had the crowd on their feet during their epic match, as the 26-year-old gatecrashed the last eight of the tournament.

Both players lost their throws in the opening three legs, but Dobey grabbed a 5-3 lead to obtain the advantage at a crucial stage.

However, Hughes fought on valiantly despite the darts not comfortably finding the trebles. Hughes got the match back to 7-5 before staging a comeback against the Northumberland player.

Dobey was up 9-6, and it seemed as though the match were over, but the youngster began to wobble at the oche as the crowd urged him to cross the finish line.

Hughes inexplicably won three legs in a row as the audience cheered his brave effort.

At 9-9, Hughes' low average of 90.38 came back to haunt him as his opponent won the last-leg shootout after landing 17 efforts of 100 points and above.

Dobey expressed his gratitude after the match, as PDC Darts shared:

Here are the match stats, courtesy of 3 Dart Analyst:

Wade proved why he is one of the greatest players of his generation as he dismantled Van de Pas with consummate ease.

Big Ben was never at the races as his opponent racked up the legs in quick succession. The Machine averaged only 92.87, but the Dutchman was woefully out of form.

Wade won the first eight legs and never looked back, though he conceded a couple of cheap legs before passing the finishing post.

Dobey proved he is a future star of the game, but the flair darts came from Noppert, who appears to be a future tournament champion.

Anderson struggled at the start of his match, as he has done in previous efforts, but the class of his finishing was clear as he found his groove.

Wade remains a contender for the title, but he was not tested in any way on Thursday night and needs to improve his average.

All scoring information and match details, per PDC.tv.