TED HANKEY made a remarkable comeback from 6-1 down against Simon Whitlock to win through to the William Hill Grand Slam of Darts quarter-finals on Wednesday night, as Scott Waites, Robert Thornton and Tony O'Shea joined him in the last eight.
Hankey continued his return to form at the Wolves Civic with one of the most memorable fightbacks in the event's history as he won through to the last eight for a second time.
The Telford ace, a two-time Lakeside Champion, had suffered a minor stroke in Wolverhampton 12 months ago and has struggled to get to grips with diabetes since, but confirmed his return to darts' big-time in a dramatic contest.
Whitlock opened the match with a 104 checkout and won six of the first seven legs to leave Hankey reeling - only for the game to turn around as he clawed back into the game as the Australian faltered.
Hankey won four successive legs to pull back to 6-5, and though Whitlock edged away with double ten, his opponent first in double five, tops and double 11 to move ahead for the first time at 8-7.
Whitlock levelled by taking out 96 for a 12-darter, and the pair shared the next two legs to force a decider, but two tons helped Hankey to be first to a finish before he landed tops at the first time of asking to complete an amazing triumph.
Hankey now plays 2010 Grand Slam of Darts champion Waites in Friday's quarter-finals, after the Lakeside Champion continued his love affair with the Wolves Civic with a fine 10-6 defeat of Mark Webster to open the second round.
Webster held leads of 2-1 and 5-4 early in their game, with the pair sharing the first 12 legs before Waites pulled away with 180s in successive legs and then sealed victory with a 13-dart finish.
Former UK Open champion Robert Thornton and three-time Lakeside Championship runner-up Tony O'Shea will also meet in the quarter-finals on Friday night, after they overcame Mervyn King and Andy Hamilton in titanic struggles.
Thornton had burst into a 4-1 lead in his clash with King, who hit back with five successive legs - including two 12-darters and a 121 finish - to move 6-4 up.
The Scot responded with a 13-darter in levelling and shared the next four before taking a 9-8 cushion and completing victory with a 161 checkout.
Stockport's O'Shea enjoyed a 10-7 victory against Andy Hamilton in their second round contest, with the 2007 finalist hitting eight 180s and a 136 finish but unable to overhaul his opponent, whose tally of seven maximums was accompanied by 16 scores of 140 or more.
The pair had shared the first six legs, but O'Shea hit a key 13-darter in a run of three legs as he established a cushion which he would never lose.
O'Shea has lost in seven televised finals during his career, but said: "I keep falling just short in big competitions but I feel as if I'm hitting form at the right time and I'll be giving it my all to try and win a major."
The second round concludes with the remaining four games on Thursday night, including Phil Taylor's meeting with Gary Anderson in a repeat of the 2011 final.
Michael van Gerwen, last year's beaten finalist, plays European Champion Adrian Lewis, while seven-time major winner James Wade takes on former Players Championship Finals winner Paul Nicholson and Belgian brothers Kim and Ronny Huybrechts will make history as they face each other for a place in the quarter-finals.
Tickets for Thursday's William Hill Grand Slam of Darts are still available at the Wolves Civic Box Office or by calling 0870 320 7000.
William Hill Grand Slam of Darts
Wednesday November 13
Second Round
Scott Waites 10-6 Mark Webster
Tony O'Shea 10-7 Andy Hamilton
Robert Thornton 10-8 Mervyn King
Simon Whitlock 9-10 Ted Hankey
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