ST HELENS darter Stephen Bunting delivered a masterclass in big finishing to dump out World Champion Luke Humphries on Day Two at the Cazoo Masters in Milton Keynes.

Saturday’s double session saw eight second round ties take place at the Marshall Arena, with Humphries, reigning champion Dobey and 2023 World Champion Michael Smith all crashing out.

World number one Humphries was beaten 10-7 by an inspired Bunting, who registered a quartet of ton-plus checkouts to boost his hopes of landing a first televised PDC title.

Bunting made a blistering start to proceedings, opening his account with back-to-back 13-darters, and maintaining his two-leg buffer with a 130 checkout in leg four.

Humphries replied with 117 and 145 finishes midway through the contest, although he was unable to reel in a relentless Bunting, who landed a brace of 110 checkouts to retain his advantage.

Humphries – who averaged 99 in defeat - also fired in a stunning 140 outshot in leg 12, but a sensational 146 combination from Bunting in the penultimate leg catapulted him to victory.

“It’s a massive confidence boost for me,” admitted Bunting, who fought back from 5-2 down to deny Ross Smith in Friday’s first round.

“When you’re playing against the World Champion and world number one, you know you’ve got to produce something close to your best, and I think my finishing tonight got me over the line.

“I feel like I’m playing the best darts I’ve ever played, and I believe I can win again.”

World number three Michael Smith was a high-profile casualty in Milton Keynes, succumbing 10-6 a clinical Dimitri Van den Bergh in the evening's finale.

Van den Bergh rattled in 120, 132 and 150 finishes to send Smith packing, just days after the St Helens star claimed the spoils on Night One of the Premier League in Cardiff.

In the afternoon’s opener, two-time runner-up Dave Chisnall withstood a late rally from world number seven Danny Noppert to book his place in Sunday’s final day of action.

Chisnall, who averaged 109.26 in his opening round demolition of Martin Schindler, recovered from a 4-2 deficit to deny Noppert, winning seven of the next nine legs on his way to a 10-8 victory.

Sunday’s final stages will see the quarter-finals take place in the afternoon, which will be followed by the semi-finals and final in a bumper evening session.

Sunday's play will be broadcast live on ITV4 in the UK, through the PDC's worldwide broadcast partners including DAZN and Viaplay, and on PDCTV (excluding Germany, Austria & Switzerland based subscribers).

2024 Cazoo Masters.

Saturday February 3.

Afternoon Session.

4x Second Round.

Dave Chisnall 10-8 Danny Noppert.

Damon Heta 10-8 Rob Cross.

Peter Wright 10-8 Krzysztof Ratajski.

Daryl Gurney 10-8 Joe Cullen.

Evening Session.

4x Second Round.

Nathan Aspinall 10-5 Dirk van Duijvenbode.

Stephen Bunting 10-7 Luke Humphries.

Michael van Gerwen 10-4 Chris Dobey.

Dimitri Van den Bergh 10-6 Michael Smith.

Sunday February 4.

Afternoon Session (1245 GMT).

Quarter-Finals.

Stephen Bunting v Peter Wright.

Nathan Aspinall v Daryl Gurney.

Michael van Gerwen v Dave Chisnall.

Dimitri Van den Bergh v Damon Heta.

Evening Session (1900 GMT).

Semi-Finals.

Bunting/Wright v Aspinall/Gurney.

Van Gerwen/Chisnall v Van den Bergh/Heta.

Final.

Bunting/Wright/Aspinall/Gurney v Van Gerwen/Chisnall/Van den Bergh/Heta.