Teenage sensation Luke ‘The Nuke’ Littler continues to set the darts world on fire after winning his first PDC title at the Bahrain Masters in a thrilling final against Michael van Gerwen.
Littler, playing in his first tournament since reaching the finals of the PDC World Darts Championship at Alexandra Palace earlier this month, had beaten Nathan Aspinall and Gerrün before reaching the highlight with Van Gerwen. -Had to overcome two knockout matches against Price.
The 16-year-old took a 5-3 lead against the three-time world champion and must have been nervous when the Dutchman brought the match back to 5-5.
But from there Littler surged to victory, opening with a 170 checkout before taking double 10 to beat Van Gerwen’s throw and take the title with his own double-top finish.
The teenager, who turns 17 in two days, had already made history earlier in the day when he hit nine darts against Nathan Aspinall in their quarter-final match.
He scored a perfect foot in a 6-3 victory over the No. 4 seed, becoming the youngest player to accomplish this feat in the World Series. Phil Taylor is the only player to throw nine darts in the World Series, which began in 2013.
Littler’s nine-dart leg was the first of the match, as he hit a triple 20 with his first seven darts, followed by a treble 19 and a double 12. As the crowd erupted, opponent Aspinall joined in the celebration.
Littler took the second leg with Dart and led 2-0, but Aspinall broke back in the third leg with a held throw to make it 2-2. However, the teenager rode the momentum, winning four of the next five legs and cleaning up with a 116 checkout to set up a semi-final matchup with Geryn Price.
Price ended his 20-game winning streak by defeating newly crowned world champion Luke Humphries 6-4 in the quarterfinals, but was no match for the confident Littler.
The teenager picked up where he left off, posting a best 170 finish in the semi-finals to a 7-3 victory over the Welshman, who also posted a 124 checkout and a 146 checkout.
Littler then defeated Van Gerwen to win his first PDC title.
“I’m happy to win. I played well yesterday and I played well tonight,” he told ITV4 after the win. “No one will believe me, but I haven’t thrown a dart since the world finals.
“Michael [Van Gerwen] He is one of the best players and I’m happy that he won on his debut. This week has been unbelievable so I’m happy to have won. ”
Van Gerwen was full of praise for the youngster after the defeat, adding: Everyone knows what he’s capable of. Let him grow and do his thing.
“What you didn’t do in the previous match you get punished, that’s how sports work. Of course I was disappointed, but sometimes you win and sometimes you lose.
“I’ll get him, don’t worry!”