Luke Littler bought a Manchester United shirt hours before his World Matchplay quarter-final – then kept alive the dream of a £3 million milestone by crushing Josh Rock 16-7 in Blackpool.
The 19-year-old world No1, who had posted a picture of himself in the new blue Red Devils away kit on social media, produced a dominant display at the Winter Gardens to stay on course for a second straight title. Littler now needs only to reach Sunday's final to become the first player in history to break the £3 million ranking money threshold, opening up a lead of over £2 million on world No2 Luke Humphries.
“Littler beats Rock 16-7, needing only final to break £3m ranking money record.”
After a slow start, Littler took control following the first interval. He had landed six perfect darts in the second leg, missing out on a nine-darter, but soon moved 3-2 ahead. Rock levelled at 5-5 before Littler won three straight legs, including a clinical 108 checkout. He then ran off seven successive legs to lead 12-5, effectively ending the contest. The defending champion wrapped it up on his favoured double 10, after hitting 17 maximums and landing 53 per cent on his doubles.
“(It was) another brilliant game for myself,” Littler told Sky Sports. “I have gone 109, 113, 109 again (match averages), so I have just got to keep it going. Fair play to Josh, he gave me a really good game there. I think it was the third session where I won all five legs. I kind of got myself into that lead and I just had to stay there and got the job done.”
Littler now faces Dirk van Duijvenbode in the semi-finals on Saturday. The Dutchman, who knocked out Michael van Gerwen in the last round, defeated Gary Anderson 16-13 after building a 14-6 lead and surviving a spirited fightback from the 2018 champion, who landed a 154 checkout before van Duijvenbode eventually won on a third match dart at double 10. Van Duijvenbode has reached the World Matchplay semi-finals for the first time.
Earlier, Cameron Menzies updated fans after withdrawing from his match against Ross Smith due to feeling faint. Menzies posted on Facebook: “I’m grateful to the medical team for looking after me, to Ross for checking on me, and to everyone at the Winter Gardens for their support. A big good luck to Ross for the rest of the tournament.” Smith will play Gerwyn Price in the quarter-finals on Friday.
