"I still believe that if everyone played their best in a room, Michael wins" - Humphries still in awe of Van Gerwen

For the first time since England's disappointing World Cup of Darts early exit, Luke Humphries returns to the PDC stage this weekend at the 2025 US Darts Masters in New York. After a big fallout following England's shock defeat to Germany, Humphries is looking to put things right.

Since Humphries and partner Luke Littler were defeated by the German duo of Martin Schindler and Ricardo Pietreczko in their first match at the World Cup of Darts, there has, as mentioned, been a big fallout. Legendary world champion Dennis Priestley called out the two Lukes for having let their country down. Welsh rival Gerwyn Price questioned the team spirit of the English pairing and of course, many fans on social media weren't too forgiving either.

After a short break away from the drama in Benidorm though, Humphries is now ready to prove a point and let his darts answer any critics.

"Yeah, I feel good. It was a good time in Benidorm — great fun. I didn’t even think about darts once, to be honest," smiles the world number one in conversation with Online Darts. "It was great to just get away, enjoy myself, and not have to worry about the constant stress of darts."

Still though, the uproar following the World Cup of Darts did come to Humphries' attention. "I knew when we lost it was going to be big news, but people forget — we never once said we were going to win it with ease. That was everyone else," he says. "It was gutting to see so many English fans happy to see us lose. The Germans would never do that to their players. It was incredibly tough, especially for Luke. I could tell by his face he didn’t enjoy it. I kind of relished it, but he’s still young to that. It seems to have carried on more than I expected."

"There was a lot of talk about us not being a team. But from the horse’s mouth — we were a team," he adds firmly, shutting down the speculation of Price, Priestley and others. "We didn’t arrive at the same time because I told Luke, 'Do your own thing.' I get there four hours before, he gets there two. I need more practice, he doesn’t. We sat right next to each other at the table — me, my manager, my girlfriend. He sat right beside me. So that stuff about not being a team was not true. We get along really well. It just didn’t happen for us."

Ultimately, Humphries also wants the praise to be put onto the German pairing rather than just criticism of the English. "We didn’t play horrifically — a 93 average is okay — but Germany were fantastic," says Humphries with class. "That fifth leg killed us. If we’d gone 3-2 up, we might’ve found our rhythm. But that deflated us. That was the turning point."

Some have since raised the viewpoint that Littler's struggle with the German crowds will ensure he doesn't return to the World Cup of Darts. Humphries admits the choice of his partner for England isn't one he can make.

"You’d have to ask him. I think it’s so prestigious that he will. Whether he goes back for Euro Tours? That’s not for me to answer. I’m sure he’ll answer that for you, but that wasn’t a nice environment for him. I don’t think he enjoyed it," Humphries says of Littler’s World Cup debut. "He deserves some slack — he’s done nothing wrong. He’s a great pioneer for the sport. We should celebrate him, not whistle at him."

As mentioned though, now it's back to singles action for Humphries and at the US Darts Masters in New York, he has a chance to hit back immediately in one of the most iconic sporting venues on the planet - Madison Square Gardens.

"It's amazing. I mean, it doesn't get boring every time you come here. It's my third year and it's just so iconic — such a great place to be. I really look forward to coming to this one every year," he says. "I think the first year I came, I wasn't as big a superstar in them days. Now I'm maybe a little bit bigger, so yeah, I'm on the poster now. It is great to see yourself up there outside Madison Square Garden — such an iconic venue. So yeah, really, really pleased about it."

Another player returning to action after a short absence is Michael van Gerwen, with Humphries welcoming back his long term rival. "Yeah, it’s good to see him back. What he’s gone through isn’t easy. This might be a catalyst for him to fully focus on darts. You might see a resurgence — maybe not his peak, but a really focused version of him ready to do damage. I’ve got to be wary of that," analyses Cool Hand Luke. "I still believe that if everyone played their best in a room, Michael wins. It’s everyone’s opinion, but for me, other than Phil, Michael at his peak was something else. I’d never seen darts like that."

Whilst the draw for the US Darts Masters hasn't been announced at time of writing, Humphries can expect to face one of the North American challengers - either Matt Campbell, Jim Long, Danny Lauby Jr, Jules van Dongen, Leonard Gates, Adam Sevada, Jason Brandon or Stowe Buntz.