Auckland Darts Masters

GARY ANDERSON will begin his title defence at the Auckland Darts Masters, presented by TAB & Burger King, against Australia's Kyle Anderson on Friday.

Two-time World Champion Anderson claimed the World Series of Darts title in Auckland last year when he overcame 2015 winner Adrian Lewis in the final at the Trusts Arena.

He has been paired with namesake Kyle Anderson in Friday's first round in New Zealand, with the Australian ace on a high after winning his first PDC ranking title at a Players Championship last Saturday, when he also landed a nine-dart finish.

UK Open champion and world number three Peter Wright faces a tough test when he comes up against Corey Cadby, the reigning PDC Unicorn World Youth Champion who knocked out Phil Taylor in last year's Perth Darts Masters.

Taylor, the 16-time World Champion who will compete in Auckland for the final time in this weekend's event, has drawn newcomer Darren Herewini for his first round tie, with the 26-year-old making his TV debut against the sport's greatest ever player.

DPNZ number one Rob Szabo will come up against another debutant in the PDC's international World Series of Darts events, Michael Smith, while another top Kiwi, Warren Parry, has drawn five-time World Champion Raymond van Barneveld.

Emerging Kiwi star Cody Harris will take on Australia's Simon Whitlock, while U.S. Darts Masters finalist Daryl Gurney meets Adelaide's Rob Modra and two-time World Series finalist James Wade plays home qualifier Mark Cleaver.

The Auckland Darts Masters, presented by TAB & Burger King, will be played from August 11-13 at the Trusts Arena. For tickets, visit www.ticketek.co.nz.

TV coverage will be live in New Zealand on Sky Sport, and worldwide through the PDC's series of broadcast partners, as well as through PDCTV-HD at www.pdc.tv for Rest of the World Subscribers.

UK TV coverage will be from 7pm (BST) on ITV4, with coverage in the Netherlands on RTL7 from 10pm on Friday and Saturday and 10.40pm on Sunday.

Auckland Darts Masters, presented by TAB & Burger King
Draw Bracket 
Gary Anderson (1) v Kyle Anderson
Simon Whitlock v Cody Harris
James Wade (4) v Mark Cleaver
Daryl Gurney v Rob Modra
Peter Wright (2) v Corey Cadby
Michael Smith v Rob Szabo
Raymond van Barneveld (3) v Warren Parry
Phil Taylor v Darren Herewini

Schedule of Play
Friday August 11 (7pm local time)
First Round
Michael Smith v Rob Szabo
Daryl Gurney v Rob Modra
James Wade v Mark Cleaver
Raymond van Barneveld v Warren Parry
Phil Taylor v Darren Herewini
Simon Whitlock v Cody Harris
Gary Anderson v Kyle Anderson
Peter Wright v Corey Cadby
All games best of 11 legs

Saturday August 12 (7pm local time)
Quarter-Finals
Order of Play TBC
All games best of 19 legs

Sunday August 13 (6pm local time)
Semi Finals 
Final
All games best of 21 legs