Raymond van Barneveld could not hold his own against Luke Littler in the second round of the World Series of Darts Finals in Amsterdam on Saturday night. 'Barney' lost 6-4 to the teenage sensation.
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With an average of 99.56 and a finish percentage of 67 percent, Van Barneveld certainly did not play bad, but scoring-wise Littler was just a little better. After Van Barneveld won the first leg, Littler strung together three legs with two 14-darters and a 13-darter.
Littler then missed four chances to make it 4-1 before Van Barneveld connected with a 16-darter to make it 3-2. The Dutchman also could not take advantage when Littler was not out in five visits in the sixth leg. Barney reduced the deficit to 4-3 with a 68 finish.
In the eighth leg, Littler was again not out in five innings, but again Van Barneveld was too far behind to take advantage of it. Littler hit the double 5 for a 16-darter to make it 5-3. Van Barneveld pressed on once more with a 14-darter, but then Littler ended the match in fine fashion with a 12-darter.
"Well, I played well. I enjoyed it," the five-time world champion spoke realistically to Viaplay after finishing. ''Right now this gentleman is too good. He is so complete.
However, the game shown offers Van Barneveld hope for the upcoming tournaments. ''It was fantastic here in front of my own crowd, I'm grateful. It tastes like more. I'm playing 99 average. If I keep up this level, I'm going to make strides on the Pro Tour as well. I really believe in that."
Van Barneveld is currently in the race to qualify for almost all television tournaments this fall. 'Barney' is virtually qualified for major tournaments such as the World Grand Prix, Players Championship Finals and the World Darts Championship. Van Barneveld also still has a chance to compete in the Grand Slam of Darts.
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