Luke Littler, 16, routs Brendan Dolan as darts wonderkid's fairytale run goes on
Luke Littler dismantled Brendan Dolan setting up a PDC World Championship final vs Rob Cross with a staggering 5-1 victory.
Few had heard of Littler prior to the start of this season's championship, but in the space of a few weeks he has become one of the biggest names in all of sport. He breezed past Christian Kist in the first round, before dumping out UK Open champion Andrew Gilding, Matt Campbell and five-time world champion Raymond van Barneveld in the round of 16.
And after beating Dolan, he will face former world champion Rob Cross on Tuesday evening and is just two more victories away from completing one of the greatest sporting stories.
There have been few signs of nerves from the 16-year-old in his contests up to this point, but he did see his throw broken in the very first game by Dolan. The Northern Irishman then took control of the first set when he made it 2-0, but Littler once again showed nerves of steel to win two legs on the spin to level it up.
The deciding leg of the first set started with Littler throwing a maximum and he never relinquished control of the leg to notch the opener - with an average just shy of 100 - in front of a jubilant crowd.
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'The Nuke' had already banked a cool £50,000 reaching the final eight, but along with the place in the semi final, he had a chance to double his winnings. And Dolan who has never been beyond this stage instantly found himself under the pump in the second, breaking the throw with a faultless 100 checkout.
He consolidated his break with a 12-dart leg on his own throw, with the fervent Ally Pally crowd loudly singing his name. Littler then routinely broke Dolan again to wrap up the second set in comprehensive fashion. At the end of that there was nearly 30 points between the two players' averages.
Littler held his throw to start the next set, but the History Maker' stopped a run of seven consecutive legs going against him with a timely 87, finishing on the bull. And he then assumed control of the third, breaking Littler's throw to mean he was throwing for the set. But with Dolan sat on 32, the teenage prodigy drilled another tonne-plus finish to restore parity, ensuring there would be a deciding leg for the second time in three sets.
Littler will face Rob Cross after beating Brendan DolanHowever, there wasn't any sense of jeopardy in that leg, with Dolan all the way back on 298 he hit tops to move in to a 3-0 lead.
Both players held their throw to start the fourth, before it assumed a similar pattern with Littler breaking in the all important third leg and then finishing the job to move just one set away from another famous victory.
But with the finishing line in sight, there was some erroneous finishing to allow Dolan to take an early fourth-set lead against the darts. And he finally got himself on the board, holding his nerve with a classy tonne-plus finish to win 3-1.
Any discussion of a miraculous comeback was quickly snuffed out as Littler opened the set with a staggering 140 checkout to break the throw, winning the final set 3-1.
Speaking after the win, Littler confidently declared he has a very good chance of making more history to become world champion. “I’m in the semi-final on my debut. I’m glad to be here, I’ve earned it. If I keep it up, I’ve got a good chance [of winning] if I keep it up. I’m definitely thinking about winning the title.
Littler was in stunning form as he beat Dolan (PA)“At 4-0 I thought you’re just one away. Then Brendan came back. My board management is probably one of the best. I know what I’m going for, I know when to settle.”
He will now face Rob Cross - the last man to lift the Sid Waddell trophy in his debut campaign - in the final four in another tantalising tie. Cross reached the semis after another astonishing quarter which saw him rise off the floor to beat Chris Dobey from four sets down. "He was unbelievable on debut and so am I. I can’t wait to play him," Littler said of his next opponent.
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Cross admitted that he will go into the tie as the underdog, but appreciated it was the other man on the oche, who neutrals would be pulling for. “Everyone loves an underdog story,” he said. “As the public and people looking at the game, everyone loves an underdog story.
“I am not being rude, I am on his side, I love an underdog story. It took a bit of pressure off me winning it first time as well.
“He’s fantastic and he deserves all the luck in the world, he is a nice young boy. Tomorrow we play darts, though, and I have to go down to business.”
Sky Sport pundit John Part gave his verdict: “He was great all the way. He knows what he’ doing. He said it. I’ve said it. He’s intelligent, he’s not new. He’s not new to darts. He’s young. He’s been playing a long time. He knows darts inside out.”
He added: “You might look at an MVG play or a Gerwyn Price and you might expect that kind of performance. And that’s that. But when it’s coming from out of left-field seemingly, it’s distracting, it’s alarming and makes you nervous in situations you normally wouldn’t be.”
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