"He hasn’t got many mates on the tour because a lot of people are jealous of him" - Nathan Aspinall on brotherly bond with Luke Littler ahead of World Darts Championship QF
PDC
Nathan Aspinall has had a difficult year plagued by injury, struggling to reach his best level. But at the 2025 PDC World Championship, the 33-year-old Englishman is showing signs of improvement and is into the quarter-finals. Tonight he takes on the favourite for the world title, Luke Littler.
Aspinall, who is with the same management, gets along quite well with Littler. “I see myself as maybe an older brother in the darts world. He’s a nice kid. He hasn’t got many mates on the tour because a lot of people are jealous of him – I am not," 'The Asp' says warmly of his quarter-final opponent. “I appreciate what he has done for the game, what he has done for himself and his family. I think he’s a fantastic darts player. And the way he has handled himself at 17 with the media… I don’t think many full-grown adults could do what he has done. I tip my hat to the guy – but I am still going to smash him on New Year’s Day!"
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Despite making the last eight, Aspinall has not yet hit top gear this World Championship. As mentioned though, the level he has shown so far has proven more than sufficient to qualify for the quarter-finals quite easily. He successively defeated Leonard Gates, Andrew Gilding and Ricardo Pietreczko and has only dropped one set at the Alexandra Palace this year.
“Apparently I am playing absolutely rubbish and I am finished, according to social media," he says sharply. “I’ve had to have a very different New Year’s Eve this year - normally I have a party in my house, but this time it’s on the practice board with Chris Dobey. I love being the underdog, that spurs me on.”
Curtains down on another epic day at Ally Pally… ✅
— PDC Darts (@OfficialPDC) December 31, 2024
The Quarter-Finals await! pic.twitter.com/qhaEQGpTsS