In his latest column, PDC Stats Analyst @ochepedia assesses the developing and potentially record-breaking rivalry between World Champion Luke Humphries and Premier League winner Luke Littler... Full story 👉 bit.ly/HumphriesxLitt…
Breakdown of the stats behind Luke Littler and Luke Humphries' darting rivalry
PDCSaturday, 01 June 2024 at 09:00
Luke Littler and Luke Humphries contested the final of Premier League Darts last week. It was a replay of the World Championship final early this year, but with a different ending.
In the two most high-profile major finals of 2024 so far, two players who were not yet born at the time of the founding of the PDC (1994) played. Littler and Humphries combined for 65 legs in those two finals. After losing the World Championship final, Littler did manage to win his first PDC major this time, good for a winner's cheque of 275,000 pounds.
The 18-year-old Littler is well on his way to dominating the sport in the coming years. Notably, a similar situation played out 11 years ago when Michael van Gerwen defeated 16-time world champion Phil Taylor, kicking off the then 24-year-old's legendary career.
For the next four years, the rivalry between Taylor and van Gerwen was the most exciting and fiercely fought in darts. The rivalry between Littler and Humphries could well go the same way. They also seem to be pushing each other to higher and higher levels. PDC analyst Christopher Kempf calculated that in the first five months of 2024, the world champion and the Premier League champion played 140 legs in matches between them. They did so at an exceptionally high level with a combined average of 100.78.
Littler does seem to set himself up as Humphries' "bogey player," winning seven of their eight duels between them that took place after the World Darts Championship final.
Damon Heta defeated Littler at the UK Open
One of Littler's main rivals could be Damon Heta, the Australian number one who eliminated Littler at the UK Open in March. Heta then averaged 106 in that quarterfinal, which was his best performance ever in a ranking match on TV. It is also the only 2024 TV tournament in which Littler, after qualifying, did not make the final.
Littler recovered somewhat by beating "The Heat" 6-3, 6-2 on the European Tour, but Littler will need to beat Heta often on the to make up for the impact of that loss on the UK Open ranking.
Still, Littler will especially have to take Humphries into account it seems. With Littler still only 17 years old and his biggest rival not yet 30, and with nine matches already in the books this year, this duel could probably effortlessly surpass previous long-standing rivalries such as Phil Taylor-Michael van Gerwen and Phil Taylor-Raymond van Barneveld.
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- Luke Littler played incredible darts yesterday in the semi-final and the final, heralding a new era of darts (along with some of the other brilliant young players who are emerging). And yet, at Luke's celebration feast, de Decker's ghost is Banquo to Littler's Macbeth, mournfully looking on.
UndartedWaters18-11-2024 - Am not outraged and as said above i dont like anyone from any country doing it to anyone from any country. Whoever is going for a double should have best of order.Mysstree17-11-2024
- Say what? It happens in other countries; Littler in January - this year (Holland), go and watch the evidence on YouTube. If it is going to be done to English players, then we are more than entitled to dish the same back when players face off in England. When it happened to Littler in Holland in January... where was your outrage then? ABE attitude.MrYnyslas197117-11-2024
- I dont like individuals or crowds trying to put any player off when they are trying to check out, how anyone can think its okay for the crowd to whistle or shout as someone is throwing for a double is beyond me but it does seem to have become part and parcel of the modern game. I no longer play now, darts is as good as dead at a local level round my way but when i did play many years ago, no matter how intense the rivalry you never shouted out or whistled when an opponent from the other team was throwing for a double.Mysstree17-11-2024
- The pundits glossing over the other factor at play in that match. They appear to be somewhat constrained in what they can say publicly.UndartedWaters16-11-2024