Luke Littler remains favorite to claim a maiden World Darts title at Alexandra Palace, although time is running out on his record-breaking run which is becoming “disappointing”.
The teenage sensation and last year’s runner-up began his campaign with a 3-1 win over Ryan Meikle, where he recovered from a slow start to hit a record average of 140.91 in the fourth and final set.
Littler’s 32-dart set included six perfect throws en route to an 11-dart opening leg before he came agonizingly close to the finish with a nine-dart following, missing D12, which would have been his fifth nine-dart of the campaign;
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Luke Littler won the final set against Ryan Meikle in just 32 darts to see him get off to a winning start to this year’s tournament.
The 17-year-old had nine-dart legs at the Bahrain Darts Masters, Players Championship 1, the Belgian Tarts Open and the 2024 Premier League Final, although he has since missed a few as he bids to become the first PDC player in the history of: make five indarts in one year.
“It’s definitely disappointing in a good way,” admitted Littler after his second-round win over Meikle, where the pressure was on when he learned that the nine-shooter at the Worlds would result in an Ally Pally crowd fan winning £60,000. “Obviously, as soon as you make the transition to triple 19, your eyes are lit up.
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Luke Littler reflects on 3-1 win over Ryan Meikle in World Darts opener
“I heard the camera coming to the winner, so sorry, whoever you are. I’ll try again.”
His latest near-miss follows nine-dart misses with the final dart against Lawrence Ilagan and Jermaine Wattimena during his run to a Grand Slam of Darts victory in November, his 10th PDC title of the year.
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Luke Littler came agonizingly close to hitting a sensational nine darts against Jermaine Utimena in the quarter-finals of the Grand Slam of Darts in Wolverhampton.
Littler told reporters in Wolverhampton last month he was considering alternative ways to close the leg after opening with six perfect darts, although he said that was not a thought during his effort against Meikle.
“I wasn’t even thinking about 51,” Littler admitted. “Throughout the game, the shots on the cover were normal.
“I dropped 265 a few times and hit treble 19 well, but I might have to think about treble 17 for a moment.”
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Will we see another nine shooter in the world?
Martin Schindler and Damon Heta also fell short after eight perfect darts at this year’s World Cup, while Christian Kist produced the first nine darts in his 3-1 defeat against Madars Razma on 18 December.
Kist won Paddy Power’s £180,000 bonus in The BIGGER 180 campaign with his stunning perfect leg which saw the Dutchman earn £60,000, with charity partner Prostate Cancer UK receiving the same amount and the remaining £60,000 going to a random fan.
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Christian Kist finds the perfect first leg of darts to take the first set against Madars Razma
“I’ve been watching it at my friend’s house and I haven’t missed a single session apart from the night when Ryan (Meickle) played Fallon (Sherrock),” added Littler, who beat Kist on his debut en route to last year’s final. :
“I just looked at my mate and thought, ‘How did he do that? He was nowhere near last year.'” It just shows how well he’s played this year, so fair play to him :
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Watch every nine shots at the PDC World Championship, Christian Kist is the latest to hit a perfect leg on the Alexandra Palace stage.
Can White shake The Nuke at Alexandra Palace?
Littler continues on the collision course to meet defending champion Luke Humphreys in the semi-finals, with his next challenge coming against Iain White in the third round on Saturday; the winner will then face either Ryan Joyce or Ryan Searle in the last 16.
White went out in the first round after Sandro Eric Sossing withdrew due to illness and shocked European Championship winner Richie Edhaus with a 3-1 win in the next round, with the Diamond now targeting an upset of popular Alexandra Palace.
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Ian White says he is ready to upset ‘Runcorn’s No 2’ Luke Littler in the third round of the World Darts Championship.
“Look, the guy’s talented and we all know it,” White said before the match. “He’s put darts on the map again, everybody wants to come to darts, and that’s the best thing that’s ever happened to us.
“But I just want to say he’s from Runcorn, same as me, so he’s No.2 and I’m No.1.”
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