Raymond van Barneveld stuns Phil Taylor in World Darts Championship thriller to move into semi-finals
Dutchman won 5-3 at Alexandra Palace to move into the last four and potentially send old rival Phil Taylor into retirement
RAYMOND VAN BARNEVELD was crowned the winner of El Dartico as he potentially ‘retired’ Phil Taylor.
In the battle of the darting grandads, it was the Dutchman who emerged victorious to book a spot in the World Championship semi-finals.
Van Barneveld — who had labelled this clash as the sport’s “El Clasico” — prevailed 5-3 in a slugfest.
And it was potentially the last time these two veterans battle against each other on the biggest stage.
World No 12 RVB ended a ten-year hoodoo against his rival, beating Taylor at the Worlds for the first time since his famous 7-6 final victory on New Year’s Day 2007.
And in doing so, he edged 16-time world champ Taylor closer to the retirement door.
Barny, 49, said: “I was expecting more from Phil during the Championships.
“During the Worlds you use a lot of energy — talking to press, newspaper men are calling you every single day, people are texting all the time.
“It all costs energy. Maybe that was the same for Phil. But I kept believing in myself. It was a difficult match to play.
“When I saw the draw I said it would be ‘Mission Impossible.’ To win this title is the toughest draw ever. But I am still there.
“Like when I won the Premier League in 2014 against all the odds, why not? Of course I can win another world title.”
Taylor, 56, is scaling back his schedule in 2017, playing only events which his world rankings qualifies him for.
That means he will appear less on the circuit as he begins to draw the curtain on his celebrated career.
The quality was not befitting if two players with 21 world crowns between them but there were plenty of full-blooded, crowd-pleasing blows on the Ally Pally oche.
Barney took out finishes of 167 (on the bullseye), 152 and 120 and sealed the victory with a superb 86 on the bullseye.
He will now face fellow Dutchman Michael van Gerwen in the semi-finals on Sunday evening.
Incredibly, the pair will go for dinner with their respective partners to celebrate New Year before battling for a final place.
World No 1 Van Gerwen, cruised through 5-1 in his quarter-final with Daryl “Superchin” Gurney.
MVG, the winner of 25 tournaments this year, hit an average of 103.08 as well as TWO 170 finishes.
The 27-year-old said: “I was quite comfortable. I was confident of winning after that first set.
“If you face Daryl Gurney, you cannot afford him any breathing space.
“I just did my own thing and relaxed and gave myself opportunities to win.”