Charlie Wood
Luke Littler edged out Luke Humphries 6-5 in a tight encounter tainted by crowd whistles on Night Two of the Premier League of Darts in Glasgow.
On a night that threatened an early exit for Luke Littler at the hands of Rob Cross, ‘The Nuke’ excelled in the later stages to secure his first nightly win of the season.
Despite a disrupted rhythm caused by Humphries’ blooded finger and incessant crowd involvement, Littler’s sensational ‘Big Fish’ finish – the second of the campaign – provided a spark to a relatively pedestrian opening few legs.
Former world champion and Belfast’s Night One winner Luke Humphries battled through a frustrating crowd atmosphere to secure the first break of throw in the ninth leg, leaving him just one hold away from back-to-back Premier League victories.
However, Littler followed a different script, demonstrating why he is the World Champion, punching back with an amazing 10-darter to shift momentum before the decider.
A comfortable hold of throw, finishing on tops, sealed success and brought an end to proceedings.
This match bore striking similarities to previous Premier League meetings, with three of the last five meetings between Littler and Humphries now ending in a 6-5 win for the teenager.
Reflecting on the final, Littler said: “It was a weird final. We both weren’t playing well.”
Maintaining his immense professionalism, Humphries said “A difficult night all round, and I just fell short in the end”, reaffirming his place as a respected ambassador for the sport.
LITTLER’S ROLLERCOASTER RIDE TO THE FINAL
Littler was fortunate to even reach the final, after mounting an extraordinary comeback against Cross.
In a format that often leads to forgettable matches, this one will remain firmly in the memory of dating fans.
Cross’ early break of throw, with a 128 finish on the bullseye, provided a promising start for ‘Voltage’.
He extended his lead with a second break of the match, placing himself in an unlikely but healthy 5-1 lead.
Littler survived two match darts from Cross’s beloved D18, but once Littler had clawed his way back to an even game at 5-5, there was only ever going to be one winner.
The world No. 2 comfortably won the deciding leg to advance to the semi-final, setting up a rematch with Michael van Gerwen after their thrilling encounter in Belfast.
Littler avenged the events in Belfast, storming to an early lead and never relinquishing his grip on the match.
Two missed match darts to clinch the match 6-1 didn’t prevent ‘The Nuke’ from neatly completing the job in the following leg, boasting his second average in excess of 104 for the night.
The other semi-final saw Humphries best ‘The Iceman’ Gerwyn Price 6-4.
Like in his quarter-final against Chris Dobey, Humphries lost the opening leg against the throw.
This did nothing to offput ‘Cool Hand’, who returned with a break of throw of his own, dispatching a special 134 checkout, utilising the D20 twice.
On a night of comebacks, Humphries pegged back Price in a flurry of 4 consecutive legs that saw him go on to clinch victory.
VAN GERWEN’S MASTERCLASS HEADLINES OTHER QUARTER-FINAL ACTION
Stephen Bunting succumbed to Michael van Gerwen in a 6-1 demolition.
An early break from van Gerwen set the tone for a match where Bunting never found his feet.
The second break of throw, a feet only possible due to Bunting’s missed doubles on tops, extended the lead beyond the range of ‘The Bullet’.
The Bahrain Masters champion couldn’t stop the march of ‘Mighty’ Mike who averaged just shy of 110, only avoiding a whitewash following an 87 checkout.
Meanwhile, Dobey showed signs of brilliance in a tight clash with a sensational Humphries.
The former’s finishing once again proved costly, failing to capitalise on any slight chances on offer.
In contrast, the doubling power of the world no.1 reigned supreme to book his spot against Price in the next round.
Finally, Nathan Aspinall lost his first-round game for the second week in a row, falling to Price 6-4.
‘The Asp’ secured an early break of throw in search of his first points on the board but was met with a feisty 120 checkout from Price, accompanied by a trademark Welsh roar.
An exquisite 138 finish did nothing to stop ‘The Iceman’ on his path to victory.
This type of poor early season form prevented Aspinall from reaching the top four in the last campaign, a lesson Bunting will have to get up to speed with quickly if he wishes to advance to Premier League finals night.
Charlie Wood
Featured image courtesy of @snxiiy via Unsplash. Image use license found here (Unsplash). No changes were made to this image.
In article image 1 courtesy of @officialpdc via Instagram. No changes were made to this image.
In article image 2 courtesy of @officialpdc via Instagram. No changes were made to this image.
In article image 3 courtesy of @officialpdc via Instagram. No changes were made to this image.
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