Latest news with #LukeLittler
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
All at sea and then Littler roars back in epic Blackpool battle
AND that's why Luke Littler is world champion… When the going gets tough, the tough get going – and he had to turn a titanic tide beside the seaside to keep his World Matchplay dream alive. 'The Nuke' unpacked his bucket and spade to dig himself out of a massive hole to achieve a tense 13-11 win over Jermaine Wattimena in the second round in Blackpool. Relief for Luke Littler and Jermaine Wattimena at the end of an epic tussle on stage in the Empress Ballroom at Winter Gardens in Blackpool (Image: Taylor Lanning) Littler, who will go on to face former UK champion Andrew Gilding in Friday night's quarter-finals, looked all at sea as he fell 4-0 and 7-2 behind but charged back into an 8-7 lead, the match then going to a tiebreaker before the Warrington 18-year-old made it into the last eight. The tournament favourite was in ominous form with his crushing 10-2 win over Ryan Searle on Sunday and appeared super confident as he milked the crowd during his walk-on for the clash with the Dutchman but when things didn't go to plan in the first leg the tables were turned. (Image: Taylor Lanning) Littler bust 127, missed the double again on his next visit, then three attempts at the outer ring allowed Wattimena to snatch an unlikely first-leg lead against the throw. From there, 'The Nuke' couldn't find his flow and Wattimena meant business as he stormed into a 4-0 lead that left heads spinning in the Winter Gardens. Littler took the next two but it was only a temporary reprieve as Wattimena rediscovered his rhythm, making it 7-2 with back-to-back 180s part of an 11-darter. Luke Littler getting frustrated on stage in Blackpool (Image: Taylor Lanning) When Littler pulled back the next leg he gestured to the crowd, pointing to the world champion's star on his shirt as he indicated he was not ready to go home yet. And he then set about showing it as he won six legs on the spin, checking out on 120 to hit the front with the pressure clearly getting to Wattimena as his earlier poise vanished. The Dutchman recovered to level at 8-8, then punished a Littler miss for 9-9 as the contest went the distance. Luke Littler in the midst of a titanic battle (Image: Taylor Lanning) As it went to extra legs both players were missing their throws before Littler got the D10 he needed to end the fight. 'When I pointed to the star on my shirt, I'm a world champion for a reason, I find these gears when I need it,' Littler said on Sky Sports. 'I've not felt pressure like that since the first round of the world championship. I was a bit nervous and it's on to my third game here, I've won two of them. 'I want to get back on stage and right now I can't wait to be in the quarter-final.' His next opponent Gilding made it through to the last eight with an 11-5 win over Dirk van Duijvenbode.
BBC News
an hour ago
- Sport
- BBC News
Littler wins Wattimena thriller but Van Gerwen goes out
Luke Littler survived a real scare before fighting back to beat Jermaine Wattimena 13-11 in a thriller to reach the World Matchplay quarter-finals in Blackpool, but three-time champion Michael van Gerwen is out after defeat to Josh champion Littler looked out of sorts at Winter Gardens as he slipped 4-0 and then 7-2 behind against Dutchman pulling one leg back immediately before the second break, a clearly fired up Littler let out a roar of delight and gestured to the crowd that he was not going home just returned from the break reinvigorated, winning six legs in a row, but Wattimena rediscovered his composure and the two players traded blows to send the game to a tie breakLittler missed two match darts as the nerves began to show, but after making the third he once again roared in celebration and pointed to the star on his shirt, which signifies his World Championship victory."When I pointed to the star on my shirt, I'm a world champion for a reason, I find these gears when I need it," Littler told Sky Sports."I've not felt pressure like that since the first round of the World Championship. I was a bit nervous and it's on to my third game here, I've won two of them."I want to get back on stage and right now I can't wait to be in the quarter-final."Van Gerwen made a flying start against Northern Ireland's Rock, taking the opening leg with a 150 checkout before surging into a 5-1 narrowed the game to 6-4 at the second break only for Van Gerwen to move into a 9-6 lead and seemingly on the brink of Rock fought back again and the momentum to swung in his favour when a superb 152 checkout cut Van Gerwen's lead down to one, before winning the next two legs to take the lead for the first Gerwen needed a 138 checkout to stay in the game and make it 10-10, but Rock held his nerve in a tense tie break."I kept my emotions, I think, throughout the game. I don't know what was going on but I got into the game at the end," he told Sky Sports."One of the most dramatic, my heart was pumping throughout the whole game. The stress has finally gone. What a game."Gerwyn Price stormed into the quarter-finals with an 11-3 thrashing of England's Chris Dobey,Welshman Price, who was involved in an angry confrontation with Daryl Gurney in the previous round, averaged 108.7, hit eight 180s and had a 146 checkout in a dominant performance."It was fantastic. In the middle part of the game I felt like I couldn't miss," he told Sky Sports. "I put Chris under a lot of pressure. I think he still played pretty decent in patches."I think early on we were both flying and I was just pipping him on a couple of legs, probably disheartened him a little bit. It's a good game for me."Andrew Gilding set up a meeting with Littler after the former UK Open champion beat Dutchman Dirk van Duijvenbode 11-5 to reach the last eight of the World Matchplay for the second successive year.
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Luke Littler requires stirring comeback to beat Jermaine Wattimena
Luke Littler dug himself out of a massive hole to stay alive in the World Matchplay with a tense 13-11 win over Jermaine Wattimena. Littler fell 4-0 and 7-2 behind but charged back into an 8-7 lead, the match then going to a tiebreaker before the teenager made it into the quarter-finals. Littler looked in ominous form with his crushing 10-2 win over Ryan Searle on Sunday but the tables were turned early on here. Wattimena meant business and stormed into a 4-0 lead that left heads spinning in the Winter Gardens. Littler took the next two but it was only a temporary reprieve as Wattimena rediscovered his rhythm, making it 7-2 with back-to-back 180s part of an 11-darter. When Littler pulled back the next leg he gestured to the crowd, pointing to the world champion's star on his shirt as he indicated he was not ready to go home yet. And he then set about showing it as he won six legs on the spin, the pressure clearly getting to Wattimena as his earlier poise vanished. The Dutchman recovered to level at 8-8, then punished a Littler miss for 9-9 as the contest went the distance. As it went to extra legs both players were missing their throws before Littler got the D10 he needed to end the fight. 'When I pointed to the star on my shirt, I'm a world champion for a reason, I find these gears when I need it,' Littler said on Sky Sports. 'I've not felt pressure like that since the first round of the world championship. I was a bit nervous and it's on to my third game here, I've won two of them. 'I want to get back on stage and right now I can't wait to be in the quarter-final.' Earlier Gerwyn Price stormed through with an 11-3 rout of Chris Dobey. Price left Dobey with little chance, averaging 108.73 and hitting eight 180s in a performance highlighted by a 146 finish that put him 3-0 up. 'It was fantastic,' the Welshman said. 'The middle part of the game I felt like I couldn't miss. I put Chris under a lot of pressure. I think he still played decent in patches. 'I think early on we were both flying and I was just pipping him on a couple of legs, probably disheartened him a little bit. It's a good game for me.' Former UK champion Andrew Gilding made it through to the last eight with an 11-5 win over Dirk van Duijvenbode.
The Independent
2 hours ago
- Sport
- The Independent
Luke Littler requires stirring comeback to beat Jermaine Wattimena
Luke Littler dug himself out of a massive hole to stay alive in the World Matchplay with a tense 13-11 win over Jermaine Wattimena. Littler fell 4-0 and 7-2 behind but charged back into an 8-7 lead, the match then going to a tiebreaker before the teenager made it into the quarter-finals. Littler looked in ominous form with his crushing 10-2 win over Ryan Searle on Sunday but the tables were turned early on here. Wattimena meant business and stormed into a 4-0 lead that left heads spinning in the Winter Gardens. Littler took the next two but it was only a temporary reprieve as Wattimena rediscovered his rhythm, making it 7-2 with back-to-back 180s part of an 11-darter. When Littler pulled back the next leg he gestured to the crowd, pointing to the world champion's star on his shirt as he indicated he was not ready to go home yet. And he then set about showing it as he won six legs on the spin, the pressure clearly getting to Wattimena as his earlier poise vanished. The Dutchman recovered to level at 8-8, then punished a Littler miss for 9-9 as the contest went the distance. As it went to extra legs both players were missing their throws before Littler got the D10 he needed to end the fight. 'When I pointed to the star on my shirt, I'm a world champion for a reason, I find these gears when I need it,' Littler said on Sky Sports. 'I've not felt pressure like that since the first round of the world championship. I was a bit nervous and it's on to my third game here, I've won two of them. 'I want to get back on stage and right now I can't wait to be in the quarter-final.' Earlier Gerwyn Price stormed through with an 11-3 rout of Chris Dobey. Price left Dobey with little chance, averaging 108.73 and hitting eight 180s in a performance highlighted by a 146 finish that put him 3-0 up. 'It was fantastic,' the Welshman said. 'The middle part of the game I felt like I couldn't miss. I put Chris under a lot of pressure. I think he still played decent in patches. 'I think early on we were both flying and I was just pipping him on a couple of legs, probably disheartened him a little bit. It's a good game for me.' Former UK champion Andrew Gilding made it through to the last eight with an 11-5 win over Dirk van Duijvenbode.
The Sun
3 hours ago
- Sport
- The Sun
Luke Littler stuns World Matchplay Darts with one of his greatest ever comebacks agaisnt Jermaine Wattimena
Luke Littler completed one of his finest EVER comebacks to book his place in the World Matchplay Darts quarter-finals. The world champion, 18, slipped to being 4-0 DOWN to Jermaine Wattimena with a total collapse at the beginning of their second round clash. 2 2 Wattimena, 37, is the highest ranked player in the world without a PDC title to his name. So knocking Littler out would have been a seismic shock, and one that looked very real when he restored his four-leg lead to go 7-3 ahead. Yet Littler - who crashed out in the opening round of the World Matchplay last year - had other ideas. He won four legs on the trot to restore the scores, and then stormed into the lead for the first time in the entire match to make the scores 8-7. Wattimena missed a crucial bullseye to make the scores 9-9, but Littler could not capitalise, and the Dutchman eventually levelled proceedings. In the first to 11 clash, players must win by two clear legs, so Littler needed to break his opponent's throw to seal victory - before sudden death should scores reach 13-13. Wattimena refused to make it easy for his opponent, however, restoring the scores to 10-10. With Littler making it 11-10, Wattimena HAD to hold his throw. And that he did. Littler finally broke Wattimena's throw with a double 20 to complete the epic comeback and book his place in round three. The Sun is your go to destination for the best football, boxing and MMA news, real-life stories, jaw-dropping pictures and must-see video.
