Luke Humphries one-upped forthcoming World Darts Championship final opponent Luke Littler by producing a mesmerising display to down Scott Williams in his semi-final, but ‘Cool Hand’ knows that Wednesday’s blockbuster meeting with the 16-year-old prodigy will be no walk in the park.
A spectacular night of Alexandra Palace darts action began with Littler taking on 2018 world champion Rob Cross. The teenager, who came into the tournament ranked outside the world’s top 150, dropped the first set to ‘Voltage’, who came racing out of the blocks.
But Littler weathered the storm and held his nerve, piecing together three consecutive sets to take control of the contest. Once the 2007-born sensation found a rhythm, he didn’t look back, storming to a 6-2 triumph while averaging more than 106.
Littler almost seems unbeatable on the big stage in his debut World Darts Championship, but if any opponent has shown the capability to burst his bubble, it’s Humphries.
The 28-year-old bettered Littler’s incredible average by posting 108.74, and 60 per cent on doubles, in a 6-0 rout over Williams. Nevertheless, Humphries is worried that he could come out second best against the youngster unless he produces his best display yet.
“The way he’s played, I’ve seen [people play like that] many times, but when you come up on stage it can be a lot tougher,” he told Sky Sports following his win over Williams.
“It feels amazing,” Humphries continued. “I would never have imagined myself to be world No. 1. That is a special, special feeling. And to do it in style, I was really pleased with my performance.
“But like I’ve said in many interviews; world No. 1 can last a couple of months, world champion is forever. I’ve got a really tough task tomorrow against Luke.”
