Main event
It says a lot about the new order in darts that Michael van Gerwen will not be the center of attention at the World Championships on Saturday evening.
Instead, Luke Littler will be the headliner at Alexandra Palace when he takes on Ian White in the third round.
It has been a remarkable 12 months for the 17-year-old, who this time last year was midway through his journey to the final and, despite his tender years, establishing himself as one of the biggest names in sport.
However, Littler showed rarely seen vulnerability in his opening game against Ryan Meikle last Saturday. He was completely out of form in the first three sets before flipping a switch and posting an astonishing average of 140.91 in the fourth – the highest one-set average in the tournament’s history.
LITTLER WINS WITH A RECORD BREAKING SET 🤯
An eleven-darter, a ten-darter and an eleven-darter from Luke Littler, who averaged 140.91 in the final set to beat Ryan Meikle.
Simply ridiculous from this special talent 🙌
He’s in the third round! pic.twitter.com/0j9CQGYHKU
— PDC Darts (@OfficialPDC) December 21, 2024
But he couldn’t finish his stage interview, bursting into tears and admitting he was suffering from nervousness.
That could be a factor again tomorrow, although the fact he’s playing a familiar face could help him as White is also from Littler’s home town of Runcorn.
White, who defeated Ritchie Edhouse in the second round, previously faced Littler’s Grandpa in the Northwestern Leagues.
The 54-year-old said: “When I started darts I played against his grandfather Phil in Runcorn.
“I beat him all the time. He played for Albion. Local teams. We played against him often. We had jokes.
“I’m looking forward to it. I can’t wait.”
Van Gerwen is no longer the force he once was and faces a difficult test against experienced Irishman Brendan Dolan in the second game of the evening session.
The Dutchman won convincingly 3-0 against James Burrell in his opening game, showing the brilliance that had led him to three world championship titles.
“I think I did well in some sections, but the tank is still full,” he said.
“I think I’ve done enough and that’s the only thing that matters, especially because I know I haven’t had the best 12 months of my career.
“I love performing on stages like this. It gives me a lot of energy and the atmosphere definitely gave me goosebumps.”
Order of play – all third round games
Afternoon session (from 12:30 UK time)
Ryan Joyce vs Ryan Searle
Scott Williams in Ricardo Pietreczko
Nathan Aspinall vs Andrew Gilding
Evening session (from 1900 British time)
Chris Dobey vs. Josh Rock
Michael van Gerwen against Brendan Dolan
Luke Littler vs Ian White
Here’s how to watch
The PDC World Championship will be broadcast on Sky Sports in the UK.
You can watch the afternoon session on Sky Sports Darts and Main Event from 12:30 GMT. The evening event revolves around Sky Sports Darts and the Main Event from 1900.
Predictions
The fascination with Littler lies not so much in whether he will win, but rather in how he performs. He will have too much firepower for White, but his surprising nervousness against Meikle would have been an eye-opener for his rivals.
If he can display his usual composure, normal service will resume and his campaign will be back on track. If not, the doubts about his chances this year will become even greater.
Van Gerwen could have a tough time against world number 30 Dolan but should have enough to get over the finish line.
The evening session begins with an interesting clash between Dobey and Rock. Dobey is the bookmakers’ favorite for this game, but we expect Rock to pull off a bit of an upset.
In the afternoon, all three games should be close affairs.
But we’re looking for wins for Searle, Williams and Gilding.
