BRILLIANT Raymond van Barneveld came from 2-0 down to win six successive legs as he swept past Adrian Lewis 6-2 to reach the German Darts Championship quarter-finals on Sunday afternoon, where he is joined by Michael van Gerwen, John Part and in-form Gary Anderson.
Van Barneveld continued his fine start to the year's European Tour series of events with victory over the two-time World Champion.
Lewis made a fine start to their third round encounter by winning the opening leg with a 76 finish and hitting a 180 as he broke with a 12-darter in the second.
Van Barneveld took the third on double 16, and made his move with an 11-darter to level, trading 180s with Lewis in the process, before finishes of 13 and 14 darts put him 4-2 up.
He added two 140s before finishing double seven for a three-leg cushion, before adding another 180 and double ten to secure the win, ending the game with five 180s and an average of 102.35.
"In the first two legs Adrian was brilliant and he deserved to be 2-0 up, but the third leg was crucial and after that I played some magnificent darts," said the Dutchman.
"Coming here to qualify on Thursday to qualiy has made me more focused, but I know what I can do and hopefully I can have a shot at the title tonight."
Van Barneveld now plays Ronnie Baxter, who won through to his first European Tour quarter-final with a narrow win over Mervyn King, a two-time runner-up in 2013.
World Champion Michael van Gerwen was another narrow winner as he edged out Terry Jenkins 6-5, with the Ledbury ace missing one dart at double 15 for a 110 finish in the game's deciding leg before the Dutchman finally sealed the win.
Van Gerwen now takes on Dutch rival Jelle Klaasen in the last eight, after the former Lakeside Champion was a 6-4 winner against Wes Newton.
Three-time World Champion John Part was a clinical 6-2 winner against Belgium's Kim Huybrechts, and now meets Justin Pipe after the Taunton ace came from 2-0 down to win 6-4 against Paul Nicholson.
Gary Anderson's strong weekend continued as he hit a 161 finish on his way to a 6-4 win over Wayne Jones, which set up a quarter-final with Stoke's rising star Ian White, who impressed with a 104.30 average and seven 180s in a 6-3 win over Robert Thornton.
German Darts Championship
2014 European Tour Event 1
Sunday February 2
Afternoon Session
Third Round
Michael van Gerwen 6-5 Terry Jenkins
Jelle Klaasen 6-4 Wes Newton
Kim Huybrechts 2-6 John Part
Justin Pipe 6-4 Paul Nicholson
Raymond van Barneveld 6-2 Adrian Lewis
Ronnie Baxter 6-5 Mervyn King
Robert Thornton 3-6 Ian White
Wayne Jones 4-6 Gary Anderson
GARY ANDERSON claimed his first ranking victory for over two years with a thrilling 6-5 defeat of Justin Pipe in the German Darts Championship final on Sunday night.
The Scot, whose last title came in a Players Championship in Holland in September 2011, made an ideal start to 2014 by taking the £20,000 European Tour title at Halle 39 in Hildesheim.
Anderson had kicked off his challenge in the 48-player tournament with a brilliant second round whitewash of Irish debutant Glenn Spearing, where he averaged 108.65, before he enjoyed 6-4 wins over Wayne Jones, Ian White and Ronnie Baxter in reaching the final.
There, he enjoyed a see-saw contest with Pipe, who led 1-0 before hitting back from 2-1 down to win three successive legs as a 135 finish put him 4-2 up.
Anderson replied with a 14-dart leg, only for Pipe to take out a 13-darter as he moved to the brink of victory at 5-3 - but Anderson landed a 180 in the ninth as a 12-darter kept his hopes alive.
The tenth leg saw the tension hit both players as Pipe missed the bull for a 164 finish for the title and was also off-target with two darts at double eight as Anderson hit double one to force a deciding leg.
Pipe kicked off the final leg with a 180, but paid for three more missed match darts - with one at double 12 and two at double six going begging - to allow Anderson in to finish double ten for glory.
Pipe was forced to settle for the £8,000 runner-up prize as he was denied a second European Tour victory, having taken the Austrian Darts Open title in 2012, but the world number 12 kicked off his bid to return to the world's top ten this year in style.
Having overcome Richie Burnett, Brendan Dolan, Paul Nicholson and John Part to reach the semi-finals, he claimed a dramatic 6-5 win over Jelle Klaasen with a thrilling 134 checkout.
Klaasen had claimed his spot in the last four, for the first time in a European Tour event, in equally dramatic style as he knocked out World Champion Michael van Gerwen in the quarter-finals after picking up a 6-4 win over Wes Newton earlier on Sunday.
Five-time World Champion Raymond van Barneveld had knocked out world number four Adrian Lewis in the third round, but was defeated 6-2 by Ronnie Baxter in the quarter-finals as the Blackpool ace enjoyed his best finish in a European Tour event.
The PDC's second European Tour event of 2014 will take place in a fortnight as the NH Hotel Koningshof in Veldhoven hosts the Dutch Darts Masters, where 48 players will compete for the £100,000 prize fund from February 14-16.
German Darts Championship
2014 European Tour Event 1
Sunday February 2
Quarter-Finals
Michael van Gerwen 5-6 Jelle Klaasen
John Part 3-6 Justin Pipe
Raymond van Barneveld 2-6 Ronnie Baxter
Ian White 4-6 Gary Anderson
Semi-Finals
Jelle Klaasen 5-6 Justin Pipe
Ronnie Baxter 4-6 Gary Anderson
Final
Justin Pipe 5-6 Gary Anderson
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