- Luke Littler stormed into an early lead against Raymond van Barneveld
- The 16-year-old won the first set 3-1 on Saturday during the last sixteen
- He quickly followed that up by winning the second set at Alexandra Palace
Luke Littler took an early lead against Raymond van Barneveld in their last 16 match on Saturday evening.
The 16-year-old won the first two sets of their World Cup match after an impressive early display at Alexandra Palace.
He claimed the first set 3-1 when he hit a brilliant leg of 140, 140, 139, then T14 and tops to wrap up the set.
The crowd started chanting his name and with that came another stunning set from the youngster, who again flew past five-time world champions 3-1.
In the third set, Littler suffered his first wobble, which Van Barneveld responded to as he cruised to a 2-1 lead.
Luke Littler stormed into the lead against Raymond van Barneveld in their last 16 match
Five-time world darts champion Van Barneveld was amazed by the 16-year-old
However, the 16-year-old showed tremendous composure to overcome the deficit, turning the set around in stunning fashion after hitting his fifth 180.
Van Barneveld managed to win the fourth set 3-2 after a rare slip by the 16-year-old, who still managed to impress.
Ahead of their clash, Littler, who came through his third round clash with Matt Campbell to become the youngest player to reach the last 16 on Wednesday, spoke of his excitement at the prospect of facing the Dutch veteran.
“It would be incredible to play against Raymond,” Little admitted when asked who he would most like to play against.
“Obviously the crowd has to choose who they want on their side, so I would love to play Raymond, but Jim is also in good form.”
More to follow…