Michael van Gerwen beats defending champion Gary Anderson to win World Darts Championship

The world number one saw off his opponent in under two hours at Alexandra Palace to strip him of his title.

Scotsman Anderson, who successfully defended his title against Adrian Lewis last year, lost the first set but came back with a strong opener of 97 in the second set to draw level.

With two sets a piece in by the end of the fourth set, van Gerwen started his campaign in earnest, winning five consecutive sets in total to take a 6-2 lead.

The 2014 champion van Gerwen opened the ninth set with 180 and looked like he would wrap up the set quickly. But an untimely intervention by an excited fan, who appeared to have taken a shine to the trophy, seemed to throw van Gerwen off kilter.

Anderson managed to fight back to take the ninth set, but still lagged behind by three sets as the match's tally of 180s hit 35, setting a new record.

Another seven maximums later, despite Anderson's comeback, van Gerwen had put too much distance between the two and the Dutchman saw off rival Anderson to steal the title back.