Darts ace stars at world championship

ADRIAN Gray marked his Circus Tavern debut in style with a superb 3-2 win at the Ladbrokes.com World Darts Championship.

The 25-year-old carpet fitter, who represents Pebsham in the Bexhill Darts League, achieved the biggest win of his playing career when he defeated former world number three Ronnie Baxter in the first round at the Purfleet venue on Monday.

The PDC world number 44 now faces Darren Webster in the second round tonight (Friday) at 10.45pm live on Sky Sports.

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Gray's opening round match kicked off this year's championship and he admitted there were a few nerves flying around.

"I had butterflies in my stomach," he said. "It's a new experience for me. Everyone was just cheering and you've got everyone watching your game and there's the TV cameras as well. You've just got to try and block it out and play your game."

Gray, who was making his championship debut after coming through qualifying, was never behind against Swindon star Baxter and clinched victory by throwing a double eight.

"It was the best win of my career because it was the world championship. I started really well which was important because I wasn't chasing the game so I wasn't worrying about it," he said.

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If Gray emerges unscathed from his tie with world number 47 Webster, he will face either Peter Manley or Wynand Havenga on Thursday at 12.10pm, and then it's a possible quarter-final against Phil Taylor.

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