Emotional Littler Achieves Record Set Average in Championship Opener

Luke Littler, whose ranking has climbed from 164th to fourth within a year, began his pursuit of the PDC World Championship title with a 3-1 victory over Ryan Meikle, achieving a tournament record 140.91 set average amidst visible emotion. The 17-year-old gained international attention in January when he reached the tournament final, ultimately losing to Luke Humphries. Commencing his current campaign on Saturday, Littler came close to a nine-darter, missing double 12 by a narrow margin as he decisively defeated Meikle in the fourth and final set of their second-round match. Littler was visibly emotional at the conclusion, cutting short his on-stage interview. “It was probably the toughest game I’ve ever played. I had to fight until the end,” he stated later during a news conference. “As soon as the question came on stage and then boom, the tears came. It was just a bit too much to speak on stage.” “It is the worst game I have played. I have never felt anything like that tonight.” Admitting to experiencing nerves during the match, he informed Sky Sports: “Yes, probably the biggest time it’s hit me. Coming into it I was fine, but as soon as [referee] George Noble said ‘game on’, I couldn’t throw them.” Littler’s start against Meikle was subdued, with Meikle having two darts for the opening set, but Littler secured the lead by hitting double 20 twice. Meikle appeared unfazed against his fellow Englishman and managed to level the score, but Littler claimed the third set and demonstrated a surge in performance during the fourth. The tournament favourite achieved four maximum 180s as he secured three consecutive legs in 11, 10, and 11 darts, leading to a record set average and an overall average of 100.85. Concurrently, two seeded players were eliminated on Saturday night – five-time world champion Raymond van Barneveld suffered a defeat to Welshman Nick Kenny, while England’s Ryan Joyce overcame Danny Noppert. Australian Damon Heta also came close to achieving a nine-darter, missing double 12 when throwing for the match in his 3-1 victory against Connor Scutt. Ninth seed Heta executed four checkouts exceeding 100 points to recover from being a set behind against Scutt in a match where both competitors averaged over 97. Following his win against Meikle, Littler was embraced by his parents. Littler’s return to Alexandra Palace was met with a lively reception from over 3,000 attendees, and he showcased a remarkable performance in the fourth set. He was in contention for a nine-darter following his initial two throws in each of the first two legs and completed the set in 32 darts; the minimum possible is 27. The young player’s next match is scheduled for after Christmas against either European Championship winner Ritchie Edhouse, the 29th seed, or Ian White, and he is seeded to potentially face Humphries in the semi-finals. After entering the previous year’s competition ranked 164th, Littler has ascended to fourth globally and will reach number two if he makes it to the final again this time. He has secured 10 championships during his inaugural professional year, including the Premier League and Grand Slam of Darts. Following his appearance in the World Championship final as a 16-year-old debutant, Littler’s life underwent a significant change, and public interest in darts surged. According to Google, he was the most frequently searched athlete online in the UK throughout 2024. This festive season, it is anticipated that over 100,000 children will receive Littler-branded magnetic dartboards as gifts. His influence has contributed to a twofold increase in junior academies and has led to proposals for expanding the World Championship. Littler received the BBC Young Sports Personality of the Year award on Tuesday and placed second to athlete Keely Hodgkinson for the primary accolade. Nick Kenny is set to compete against world champion Luke Humphries in round three following Christmas. Van Barneveld experienced a surprising 3-1 defeat to world number 76 Kenny, who became emotional after his notable triumph. Kenny, aged 32, will advance to face Humphries in the third round, having overcome the Dutch player, a four-time BDO world title winner and PDC champion in 2007. Van Barneveld, holding a 32nd ranking, marked the sixth seeded player to be eliminated in the second round. Noppert, his fellow countryman and the 13th seed, suffered a surprising 3-1 loss to Joyce, who is slated to play either Ryan Searle or Matt Campbell next; the victor of that contest could potentially encounter Littler in the last 16. In other results, 15th seed Chris Dobey secured his progression to the third round by defeating Alexander Merkx 3-1. Dobey, an English player, concluded an afternoon session that commenced with three consecutive 3-0 victories. Brendan Dolan of Northern Ireland defeated Lok Yin Lee, arranging a post-Christmas match against three-time champion Michael van Gerwen. The concluding two first-round matches of the 2025 tournament saw Rhys Griffin of Wales overcome Karel Sedlacek from the Czech Republic, followed by Asia’s top-ranked player, Alexis Toylo, comfortably defeating Richard Veenstra. First round Karel Sedlacek 0-3 Rhys Griffin Richard Veenstra 0-3 Alexis Toylo Second round Brendan Dolan 3-0 Lok Yin Lee Chris Dobey 3-1 Alexander Merkx Danny Noppert 1-3 Ryan Joyce Raymond van Barneveld 1-3 Nick Kenny Luke Littler 3-1 Ryan Meikle Damon Heta 3-1 Connor Scutt All times GMT Afternoon session (12:30) Ryan Searle v Matt Campbell Dirk van Duijvenbode v Madars Razma Joe Cullen v Wessel Nijman Ritchie Edhouse v Ian White Evening session (19:00) Martin Schindler v Callan Rydz Ross Smith v Paolo Nebrida Gary Anderson v Jeffrey de Graaf Dimitri van den Bergh v Dylan Slevin