World Darts Championship: Wasp doesn't distract Gary Anderson from victory

Scotsman Gary Anderson overcame a stern challenge from debutant Kevin Burness - and a wasp - to reach the third round of the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) world championship in London on Saturday (NZ time).

The two-time champion hit seven 180s, as he claimed a 3-1 win over Northern Ireland's Burness, who had seen off Paul Nicholson earlier in the day at the Alexandra Palace.

Before beating Burness, Anderson had to overcome a wasp that landed on his shoulder during the third leg of the opening set, but the Scot was so focussed on the job at hand, he didn't notice.

The referee pointed out the pest to the 'Flying Scotsman', before calmly flicking it away, as it buzzed off.

"If it had stung me, it might have geed me up," said Anderson. "That wasp has been kicking around for ages - it has stung players before."

The 47-year-old went on to win the opening set 3-2, before Burness hit straight back to level it up at 1-1 by claiming the second.

Anderson found his groove in the third and fourth set, as he won six consecutive legs to seal the win.

Earlier in the session, Dutchman Danny Noppert enjoyed a comfortable debut victory, reeling off nine consecutive legs to defeat Royden Lam of Hong Kong.

Noppert lost the first leg of the game, before racing into the second round, where he will meet German Max Hopp.

English duo Chris Dobey and Ted Evetts also claimed 3-0 wins over Russia's Boris Koltsov and Englishman Simon Stevenson respectively.

Dobey's win earned him a match against Steve Beaton, who will contest his 18th PDC championship, while Evetts faces two-time world champion Adrian Lewis in the next round.

Earlier in the day, New Zealand's Cody Harris lost to Jamie Lewis of Wales 3-2.

The 33-year-old trailed 2-0, before fighting back to set up a thrilling final set, but couldn't get the job done.

One New Zealander remains in the tournament, with Craig Ross to make his world championship debut against Spaniard Toni Alcinas on Sunday.

Newshub.