PDC Winter Series: Michael Smith beats Jose De Sousa to clinch second successive title | Darts News

Having ended a run of 10 consecutive final defeats on Tuesday, Michael Smith made it back-to-back titles as he came from 4-1 down to beat Jose De Sousa 8-7 on Day Two of the Winter Series.A thrilling day of darts saw Smith double up on his first ProTour title in two years on Day One, while Andy Hamilton and Rowby-John Rodriguez both threw nine-darters.De Sousa built himself a 4-1 advantage in the final with legs of 11,13 and 11 before Bully Boy drew level and eventually edged it by taking out double 10 in a decider after the pair had found themselves level at 7-7. PDC Winter Series – Winners – Advertisement – World Darts ChampionshipTBC WednesdayMichael Smith 8-7 Jose De Sousa PDC Calendar – remaining events – Advertisement – Quarter-FinalsMichael Smith 6-1 Gabriel ClemensVincent van der Voort 6-0 Darius LabanauskasJoe Cullen 6-3 Brendan DolanJose De Sousa 6-5 Jeffrey de ZwaanSemi-FinalsMichael Smith 7-3 Vincent van der VoortJose De Sousa 7-2 Joe CullenFinalMichael Smith 8-7 Jose De SousaNon-stop darts as truncated season comes to a closeOver the next four weeks, a relentless schedule will close the PDC and finalise the field for this year’s World Championships which remain scheduled for Alexandra Palace in mid-December.The final five days of Pro Tour action continue on Wednesday with Grand Slam places still up for grabs as well as the last chance for many to secure their Tour card for next season. You can follow the Grand Slam action on Sky Sports with all nine days from Coventry getting underway on Monday, November 16. Players Championship FinalsNovember 27-29 – Advertisement – Listen to the Darts Show podcast on: Spotify | Apple | CastboxFollowing the Grand Slam, the tungsten stays at the Ricoh Arena with three days of Players Championship Finals action and then the final qualifier for the World Championship.Sky Sports Darts will keep you across all the action as the season reaches its climax. As well as all the action, The Darts Show podcast will catch up with all the players, discuss the talking points and get expert opinion from former world no 1 Colin Lloyd.Follow the action from the Grand Slam with all nine days covered on Sky Sports Arena – and if you are out and about updates via our live blogs and @SkySportsDarts for regular updates Friday Saturday After ending a two-year wait for a PDC title by beating Jermaine Wattimena on day one, Michael Smith made it two in a row on day two “I’m going to echo what I said yesterday, it’s the confidence and belief in myself and finally winning that title yesterday the pressure was off,” Smith told the PDC after the final. “I didn’t do too much wrong today, I was checking finishes where I needed to.“He (De Sousa) is a classy classy player and he showed that in the match. I was 4-1 down and I turned round and looked at a picture of my kids and thought ‘you know what, I played him yesterday and was 3-1 down and I managed to reel off consecutive legs and go 5-3 up or 6-3 up’ so I just thought, ‘he’s going to give you a chance, just make sure you take it’.“I’m just overjoyed and over the moon at the minute.” PDPA World Championship qualifierNovember 30 Smith began the day with a 6-3 win over Derk Telnekes before averaging 106.1 to see off Matthew Dennant 6-1 followed by 106.8 against Damon Heta.The 30-year-old overcame Dirk van Duijvenbode in the last 16 and then Gabriel Clemens, who had averaged an incredible 109 throughout the day after posting a 112 average on two occasions, before making light work of Vincent Van der Voort with a 7-3 victory.De Sousa’s route to the final saw him beat Jason Lowe, Adam Hunt, Bradle109y Brooks and Danny Noppert in the early rounds, before ousting Jeffrey de Zwaan 6-5 and averaging 110 in a 7-2 win over Joe Cullen to set up a clash with Smith.It was meanwhile a day to remember for Hamilton as he ended a seven-year wait for a perfect leg in PDC darts, the 53-year-old registering his nine-darter against Christian Bunse. One became two in the space of 10 minutes as Austria’s Rodriguez followed suit against Boris Krcmar. Michael Smith clinches second successive Pro Tour title on day two of Winter Series as he comes from behind to beat Jose De Sousa after overcoming the likes of Dirk van Duijvenbode and Gabriel Clemens, the latter of whom had averaged 109 across the day Last Updated: 11/11/20 10:16pm Winter SeriesNovember 10-14 Thursday TuesdayMichael Smith 8-6 Jermaine Wattimena Grand Slam of DartsNovember 16-24