“I needed this tonight... It’s not gone my way in the Premier League” – Luke Littler silences doubts with statement win over Mike De Decker in Krakow
PDCSunday, 22 February 2026 at 11:00
Luke Littler sent a real statement of intent in Krakow on Saturday night. The reigning world champion launched his title bid with a commanding 6-1 win over Mike De Decker at the 2026 Poland Darts Open.
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With an impressive 113.84 average and flawless display of finishing on the doubles, six from six, he left no doubt about his form. For De Decker, it was also a ninth straight defeat against Littler.
After a balanced opening in which the Belgian leveled at 1-1, Littler took complete control. Five legs on the spin, including 86 and 72 checkouts, underlined the gulf in class on the night.
The strong display came at the right time for Littler. His start to the Premier League Darts campaign has been stuttering, and in Poland, he wanted to show himself and the crowd what he can really do.
“I definitely needed this tonight"
“I definitely needed this tonight,” Littler said on stage afterwards. “I definitely needed to put on a performance not only for myself but for the fans. It’s not gone my way for the first three weeks in the Premier League. But this is Poland’s first European Tour, and I always want to win the first European Tour of the year."
That's not an empty threat from Littler either. In each of his previous two Euro Tour campaigns, the first title of the year has gone to the teenage sensation.
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Luke Littler made short work of Mike De Decker at the Poland Darts Open
“Even when we went to Saudi last month for the World Series, I wanted to win it. I got the job done," he explains. “This is only the first game. Michael (van Gerwen) and Phil (Taylor) always wanted to be the first winner, and I certainly want to be the first winner here this weekend."
Although Littler looked in top form in Krakow, he remained level-headed about the rest of the tournament, making sure to thank the fans in attendance. “It's always interesting what to expect from a new crowd. It’s their first Euro Tour, it’s our first Euro Tour coming here. Amazing fans,” he concluded.
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Kieran WoodDarts Journalist
Kieran Wood is a sports journalist based in Wales and has been active in journalism since 2022. He contributes to DartsNews.com, where he covers professional darts through news, match reports, analysis, and live coverage across the PDC calendar and major tournaments.
A key part of his work is on-site reporting from leading events. Kieran has covered the PDC World Darts Championship in person, reporting daily from the venue and providing first-hand insight from the tournament. During his coverage, he has conducted interviews with leading players including Luke Littler, Luke Humphries, and Gerwyn Price.
He is also one of the leading voices of the English-language Dartsnews Podcast, contributing regular analysis and discussion on developments across the professional darts circuit.
In his reporting, Kieran places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles when new, verified information becomes available.
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- Why is this the main story? He chose not to compete in loads of tournaments,yes he's number 1 in the world,but he does have to turn up at tournaments! Play the next world championship in Dortmund and see if he turns up!!rick6727-08-2026
- This is exactly what I mean,littler survives the 1st round,I think you'll find a lot of other players did. Can you just report on the real sport,and not just 1 person. I like Luke,but this is getting boring now,as Kevin painter once said to Taylor!! The sport is about every player,not 1 who everyone seems to have put the sport on the map.,which he hasn't,he's just got in when the money is massive. Great as he is,it seems like what's the point in anyone trying,he's going to win everything,unless it's in Germany or Australia!!!rick6726-08-2026
- I mean look, Littler's picture is first,wattimena is second and he won! Level it up. I know littler is fantastic,but the sport was here before him,and will be when he's retired. Any player in the top 64/128 can beat each other,it's not big news. Poor Jermaine,wins it,and not even the headline!!rick6726-08-2026
- I appreciate that littler is a fantastic player,but the top 3 articles are about him. Before he'd thrown a dart in the tournament. Level it out a bit, Taylor and van gerwen soon got disliked as the media could only see them,and nobody else seemed to matterrick6725-08-2026
- The two-point Lucky Loser qualifiers are Ross Smith, Robb, Whitlock, Sakai, Ilagan and Toylo. Jermaine is not on the entries list on Dartconnect for the TCH qualifier so the four from the main OoM are probably Searle, Nijman, Dobey, Wattimena.Scoobedybop24-08-2026
- The two-point Lucky Loser qualifiers are Ross Smith, Robb, Whitlock, Sakai, Ilagan and Toylo. Jermaine is not on the entries list on Dartconnect for the TCH qualifier so the four from the main OoM are probably Searle, Nijman, Dobey, Wattimena.Scoobedybop24-08-2026
- I'd happily pay for a site free of Van der Voort's every squeak and utterance.StraightArrowNoBull19-08-2026
- I think you miss the point. It is just a poll if you are willing to pay for an ad-free site. The content stays free.SheGotLegs16-08-2026
- It's great to see Mark Webster looking well,he's a top ladrick6715-08-2026
- I'm sick of everything wanting paying for ad free stuff,every site you go on,it's pay pay for no ads. I mostly dread picking my phone up,as it's subscription required. I'm not surprised I'm bloody skint. Everyone wants to rob you for services that were freerick6714-08-2026
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