Luke Littler’s exceptional mentality was on display once again as he reflected on his first-round whitewash of Matt Campbell at the US Darts Masters. The reigning Premier League champion and World Championship runner-up proved that he can perform just as well Stateside, averaging a strong 103.66 to reach the finals of the competition.
While it was Michael van Gerwen returning to the United States as defending champion at New York’s iconic Madison Square Garden venue, fans arrived with one favourite in mind – the teenager at the forefront of darts.
Littler, an avid wrestling fan, was sent a video message of encouragement by WWE star Cody Rhodes and the 17-year-old repaid the gesture by coming out to Rhodes’ entrance music, which sparked mass jubilation in MSG.
He was able to channel that energy to a 6-0 victory over Campbell in just 10 minutes, reaching the quarter-finals in style as he set up a clash with Canadian star Jeff Smith. He shocked Michael Smith with a 6-1 victory, rewarded with a tie against darts’ most famous face at the moment.
Littler had been back on stage for the first time since defeating world champion Luke Humphries in the Premier League final on May 23. And when asked if his win at The O2 had sunk in yet, Littler laughed and showed his true mentality.
“Not really, I have just flown here and got on with it,” he said to the PDC. “(Winning in America) Would just be another trophy. But obviously it would mean the world, the amount of athletes that have performed here, I have won one game and hopefully now I can go further tomorrow.”
Littler reflected further: “I feel that everything went well. Not too sure on the stats that I just hit but I felt good and couldn’t wait to get out there tonight. I’ve joined the winning list of one game, but I would like to go further and lift the trophy.”
When asked about his change in walk-on song, Littler explained: “Yeah, obviously the Americans love the wrestling, it’s where it’s based, and Cody (Rhodes) gave me a message yesterday so I thought: ‘Let’s just use his walk-on’.
“It’s been crazy but also a good thing because darts gets more recognisable outside of the UK and in different countries. Everything just went well tonight and I can’t wait to play again tomorrow.”
Littler was swamped by American fans after landing in the Big Apple and can endear himself further across the Atlantic should he go all the way and lift the title on his debut.
Elsewhere, Humphries will face Nathan Aspinall in the quarter-finals after his 6-0 win over Canadian veteran David Cameron, with fellow Premier League stars Van Gerwen, Peter Wright, Rob Cross and Gerwyn Price all enjoyed victories.
