Energy shock as Wright survives
Peter Wright felt his body going into shutdown as he survived a scare to reach the last eight of the PDC World Championship.
The super Scot thrilled a packed Ally Pally with a display of high-quality darts as he raced to a 3- 0 lead against talented Dutchman Jeffrey de Zwaan.
Wright moved within one leg of glory when he suddenly felt drained of energy.
De Zwaan took advantage and rolled off three straight sets but Wright won 4-3 in extra time.
The relieved star said: “I felt like I was going to pass out. My body was going into shutdown and I had to take energy tablets.
“All night I was waiting for Jeff to start playing. I didn’t want him to – but then he did.
“He’s an awesome player and is only 23. In a few years I’ll be watching him on the TV with my slippers on.”
Wright now faces England’s Luke Humphries who reached the quarter-finals for the second year in a row with a 4-1 victory against Kim Huybrechts.
The Scot added: “He’s quality and plays fast. He was a scary person when I played him in an exhibition a few years ago before he was well known.
“Tight games like the one tonight will do me good ahead of the challenges to come.”
Wright took out 72 to clinch the first set then destroyed de Zwaan with a 149 checkout to double his advantage.
There was more magic from Wright in the third as he took it 3- 0 with a 100 finish.
He couldn’t miss a double and moved to within one leg of victory before de Zwaan came alive to win three sets in a row.
But in the eighth leg of the decider he finally cracked and Wright took his chance.
Dutchman Dimitri van den Bergh booked his last-eight spot with a 4-3 defeat of Adrian Lewis.
Finishes of 98 and 76 helped the Belgian take the sixth set to force a decider he won 3-1. He faces Nathan Aspinall next.
Darius Labanauskas reached the quarter-finals for the first time by beating Steve Beaton 4-2 to set up a clash against top seed Michael van Gerwen.