Teenage star Luke Littler into World Championship final after beating Rob Cross
Teenage sensation Luke Littler is into the World Darts Championship final after a superb victory over former champion Rob Cross.
Littler, 16, had already seen off Raymond van Barneveld at Ally Pally but 2018 winner Cross was his toughest test to date. But The Nuke turned in another superb performance as he secured his spot in Wednesday night’s final after a 6-2 victory.
It means the teenager is the youngest ever payer to reach the final and he has taken his prize winnings from the tournament to £200,000. Littler is now the favourite to go all the way, having started out at a 66/1 outsider just weeks ago.
Littler found himself in alien territory as he lost the first set for the first time in the tournament but despite a strong start, Cross could do little to stem the tide that is sweeping through darts.
"I was just hoping to win my first round game and here I am now in the final. It is crazy. I have just settled on that stage. It does take me a few legs to settle into a game but once I have found that rhythm I am good to go," Littler said after the match.
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"I knew after the first set there was a long way to go. I will keep doing what I have been doing, in the morning go for my ham and cheese omelette and then my pizza and then get on the board. That is what I have done all the way through so I am not going to change."
2018 champion Cross even had a throw for the second too but the teenager regained his composure and hit back to take the next two legs and level the scores. The Nuke then had the momentum and began taking control of the match, going ahead for the first time at 2-1.
Littler throws at Ally Pally in the semi-final clashThe fourth went down to the wire too before Littler held firm after Cross just missed out on a nine-dart finish. And the world youth champion was then just one dart away from going 4-1 up but let his opponent back in after missing double tops.
That proved to just be brief respite for Cross as Littler piled on the pressure. The teenager continued a remarkable run of winning at least two legs in each set before checking out to go 4-2 up.
Cross fought back from the death in the quarter-final against Chris Dobey but showed no sign of repeating the trick this time around as Littler found himself one set away from a dream final.
And Littler was serenaded by the Ally Pally crowd as he delivered some more incredible darts in the eighth set, checking out on 80 to complete a famous victory.
The win means Littler is officially in the top 32 of the PDC Order of Merit and boosts his chances of reaching the Premier League, regardless of the outcome of Wednesday's final.
"I am happy to be in the top 32 and now hope I can go even higher. I have to stay focus throughout the game, no matter how long it goes on for," he added.
"I learnt that in the Andrew Kelvin game, I went 2-0 up and let all my emotions out and came back after the break and lost the set 3-0. From now on, I know I have to compose myself. I threw well and got over the line again."
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