Luke Littler broke down in tears after sealing a place in the third round of the World Darts Championship with a dramatic 3-1 victory over Ryan Meikle.
Luke ‘The Nuke’ produced a final set average of 140.91 – the best-ever in a World Championship set – to rev up the crowd at London’s Alexandra Palace. That set saw him miss out on what would have been a sensational nine-darter on the ninth and final arrow.
He was left in tears after the match, overcome with emotion due to his warm reception following victory at Ally Pally. That saw the 17-year-old’s on-stage post-match interview with Sky Sports abandoned so that he could compose himself.
Littler will now face either Ian White or number 29 seed Ritchie Edhouse in the third round after knocking out the unseeded Meikle, who had beaten Fallon Sherrock in the first round.
Fourth seed Littler is one of the favourites to win the World Championship this year after inspiring a new generation of darts fans during his sensational run to the final last year.
After edging out Meikle in the first set, his 28-year-old opponent was the one punching the air as he levelled the match at one set all.
Littler averaged just 89.05 en route to losing that set, but he raised his game to take the third set before then sealing victory with an extraordinary display in the fourth, finishing with a match average of 100.85 to Meikle’s 91.93.
Littler produced ten 180s in the course of the match, including when he missed out on a nine-darter by just one dart in that final set.
