Luke Littler storms into Grand Slam of Darts semi-finals with thumping win

3 hours ago

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Luke Littler made a stunning entrance into the semi-finals of the Grand Slam of Darts, achieving an impressive 16-2 win against Jermaine Wattimena in Wolverhampton.

Following a fantastic beginning in the tournament's group stages, Littler built on his impressive performance against Mike De Decker by delivering a commanding exhibition against Wattimena in the quarter-finals on Saturday. This victory set the stage for a semi-final clash with Gary Anderson.

Littler started exceptionally well and almost achieved a nine-darter in the second leg, just missing out after barely missing double 12.

The 17-year-old scored seven 180s in just the first five legs and achieved his best checkout of the match with a remarkable 167 finish during the sixth leg.

Wattimena took the seventh match, but he couldn't mount a serious comeback as Littler pulled ahead, finishing with 12 maximum scores and an impressive average of 105.11.

Littler shared his thoughts with Sky Sports, saying, "I was really confident heading into this evening. I kept reminding myself that it's just about short segments – first to five points, take a break, then first to five again, and another break."

"I performed really well and I’m feeling great about it. Hats off to Jermaine, but I was just on another level this evening."

Littler is optimistic that a nine-darter at a Grand Slam event is on the horizon. He stated, “When you’re performing at such a high level, it feels like it’s just around the corner. Every time I aim for a 180, the audience anticipates it, and as a player, I can sense that it’s about to happen.”

I really excelled this evening.

"It may take a while, but we remain optimistic that it will eventually arrive."

Littler is set to face Anderson on Sunday following Anderson's victory over Gian van Veen, where he won 16-14 in their quarter-final match.

Following a closely contested beginning to the game, Anderson scored four consecutive legs, gaining a two-leg advantage at 6-4.

While Van Veen stayed closely behind the Scotsman the entire time, Anderson managed to squeeze by with an impressive average of 99.13.

In the other semi-final on Sunday, Mickey Mansell will face off against Martin Lukeman.