Stephen Bunting surprised fans with his reaction to Luke Littler’s win at the Bahrain Masters. Fresh off a fairytale run at the World Darts Championship, the teenage sensation defeated Michael van Gerwen on Friday in his World Series of Darts debut to claim his first PDC televised title.
While Bunting paid tribute to Littler via TikTok, social media was flooded with messages of congratulations for “The Nuke” from across the sports world. In a post to his 140,000 followers, Bunting recorded himself applauding the 16-year-old as he accepted the trophy to the sound of Littler’s walk-out song “Green Light.”
The video ended with Bunting calling the young man “amazing.” One fan wrote: “Killed by Stephen Bunting who was recording himself clapping for Luke Littler in front of the TV. Never change Stephen.”
Another tweet said, “After karaoke, I applauded and got off the stage.” A third joked: “Her mum was clapping for the NHS during the coronavirus crisis.”
No one was more elated by the win than Littler, although he admitted he had “no expectations” coming into the tournament. “He hadn’t held a dart since the World Championship final, so he wasn’t expecting anything,” said Littler, who celebrates his 17th birthday on Sunday.
“I came to Bahrain thinking, ‘Let’s win my first round match and see who I play in the next round,’ but this week has been unbelievable.
“The Asian qualifying round was also great, but I was able to prove that I have the ability to win.” [titles]And I’m really happy to have won. ”
“I’m very happy to get over the line against a very good Michael van Gerwen,” Littler added. “Michael is still one of the best players, if not the best, but he’s very happy to win his game.” [World Series] debut.
“I can’t wait to play in any tournament. I know the Premier League is going to be tough and there’s a Pro Tour in between, but why not? Why not? It may never happen again, that’s my opinion.”