Luke Littler remains favorite to win his first World Darts Championship title at Alexandra Palace, even as he runs out of time to set a record that is becoming a “frustration”.
The teenage sensation and last year’s runner-up began his season with a 3-1 victory over Ryan Meikle, where he recovered from a slow start to post a record-breaking average of 140.91 in the fourth and final set.
Littler’s 32-darter set included six perfect throws en route to an 11-darter opener before he came agonizingly close to a nine-darter in the next leg, missing the D12 for his fifth nine-darter of a groundbreaking campaign.
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Luke Littler won the final set against Ryan Meikle in just 32 darts, making a successful start to this year’s tournament
The 17-year-old has scored rounds of nine darts at the Bahrain Darts Masters, Players Championship 1, Belgian Darts Open and the Premier League final in 2024, although he has since missed several as he tries to be the first To become a player in the history of the PDC who manages to make five nine-darters in a year.
“It definitely becomes a frustration in a good way,” admitted Littler after his second-round win over Meikle, which had the added pressure of knowing a nine-darter at Worlds would result in that a fan in the Ally Pally audience wins £60,000. “Of course your eyes light up as soon as you switch to heights 19.
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Luke Littler reflected on his 3-1 win over Ryan Meikle in his World Championship Darts opener
“I heard the camera panning towards the winner, so I’m sorry, whoever you are! I’ll try again.”
His latest near-miss follows failed nine-darter attempts with the last dart against Lourence Ilagan and Jermaine Wattimena on his way to Grand Slam of Darts victory in November – his tenth PDC title of the year.
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Luke Littler came agonizingly close to a sensational nine-darter against Jermaine Wattimena in the quarter-finals of the Grand Slam of Darts in Wolverhampton
Last month Littler told reporters in Wolverhampton that he was considering alternative ways to end a leg after opening with six perfect darts, although he said that was not a thought in his attempt against Meikle.
“I didn’t even think about 51,” Littler admitted. “Throughout the game the shots on cover were fine.
“I’ve left 265 a few times and hit triple 19 well, but I might need to take a moment to think about triple 17.”
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Will we see another nine-darter at the World Championships?
Martin Schindler and Damon Heta also failed after eight perfect darts in one leg during this year’s World Championship, while Christian Kist scored his first nine-darter in his 3-1 loss to Madars Razma on December 18th.
Kist’s stunning perfect leg won Paddy Power’s £180,000 bonus in The BIGGER 180 campaign. The Dutchman earned £60,000, charity partner Prostate Cancer UK received the same amount and the remaining £60,000 went to a lucky, random fan.
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Christian Kist achieved the first perfect dart game in his match against Madars Razma and won the first set
“I watched it at my friend’s house and didn’t miss a session except the night Ryan (Meikle) played Fallon (Sherrock),” added Littler, who beat Kist in his debut en route to last year’s final .
“I just looked at my buddy and said, ‘How did he do that? Last year he was nowhere near there!’ That just shows how well he has played this year. So be honest – he’s going to have a great holiday ahead of him!”
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Watch every nine-darter hit at the PDC World Championship, most recently Christian Kist scoring a perfect leg on the Alexandra Palace stage
Can White shock “The Nuke” at Alexandra Palace?
Littler remains on a collision course to meet defending champion Luke Humphries in the semi-finals. His next challenge is against Ian White in the third round on Saturday – the winner will then face either Ryan Joyce or Ryan Searle in the round of 16.
White conceded a free-kick in the first round after Sandro Eric Sosing withdrew through illness and shocked European Championship winner Ritchie Edhouse with a 3-1 win in the next round, with ‘Diamond’ now aiming for a famous upset at Alexandra Palace.
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Ian White says he is ready to beat ‘Runcorns No.2’ Luke Littler in the third round of the World Darts Championship
“Listen, the kid is talented and we all know that,” White said before the meeting. “He made darts famous again. Everyone wants to come to darts and this is the best thing that has ever happened to us.”
“But I just want to say he’s from Runcorn – just like me – so he’s number 2 and I’m number 1!”
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