Spaniard Toni Alcinas has claimed the biggest upset of the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) world championship so far, as he dumped world number three Peter Wright on Monday (NZ time).
Alcinas, who beat Kiwi Craig Ross 3-0 in Sunday's opening round, backed up that performance by beating 'Snakebite' 3-1 at the Alexandra Palace to reach the third round.
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Even though Wright averaged more than his rival (94.7-93.12) and threw more 180s (6-4), Alcinas was more clinical on his finishing with 42.86 percent, compared to the Scots 25.81 percent.
For Wright, this was the second straight year he has exited in the second round, while Alcinas will face either Dutchman Benito van de Pas or Canada's Jim Long next.
Both players walked to the stage full of confidence. Wright, who is known for his unique outfits, was wearing a Santa-like outfit, with Christmas trees on his pants and a glitterball on his head.
Alcinas, ranked 54 in the world, won the opening set 3-2, with a 109 finish to leave the vocal crowd stunned.
The 39-year-old then won the second set 3-1, but the tide turned, as Wright fought back to sweep the third set.
Wright looked to be in command of the fourth set too before Spain's number two landed 80 to move within two legs of a stunning win.
Both players split the next two legs to set up a last-leg decider in the fourth, with Wright needing to come out on top to force a fifth set. But Alcinas produced a brilliant 13-darter, hitting double-16 to complete the biggest shock of the tournament so far.
Earlier in the day, world number 12 David Chisnall overcame a 2-0 deficit to beat fellow Englishman Josh Payne 3-2 in the second round.
England's Ross Smith beat Singapore's Paul Lim 3-1, while Darius Labanauskas - the first Lithuanian to star at the world championship - beat Englishman Matthew Edgar by the same score-line in their first-round ties,
Germany's Gabriel Clemens, Ireland's William O'Connor, Northern Ireland's Brendan Dolan and England's Luke Humphries all claimed first round 3-0 wins over their respective opponents.
The action continues on Tuesday (NZT), with three further first round ties, including three-time women's champion Anastasia Dobromyslova in action, before Raymond van Barneveld's second-round meeting with Labanauskas.
Newshub.
