Blackpool: Luke Littler defends World Matchplay title, sets new average records
Luke Littler successfully defended his World Matchplay title in Blackpool, defeating Gerwyn Price 18-9 in the final. The victory marked Littler as only the fourth player to achieve consecutive Matchplay titles. His performance included setting new tournament and final average records.
Littler, who is the world number one, concluded the week with an average of 111.04, surpassing Phil Taylor’s previous record of 106.31 from 2010. In the final match itself, Littler recorded an average of 111.53, which also exceeded Taylor’s 111.23 average set against Adrian Lewis in 2013.
The 19-year-old secured £225,000 in prize money from the event. His total earnings on the PDC’s two-year order of merit now stand at £3,143,500, which is £2.13m more than Luke Humphries, who is in second place.
Path to the final
In the semi-finals, Littler overcame Dirk van Duijvenbode with a 17-5 victory to secure his spot in the final. During this match, Littler achieved a match average of 110 and landed 16 maximums. He noted that he had seen his average on screen reach 117 at one point.
Van Duijvenbode had reached the semi-finals for the first time after defeating Michael van Gerwen and Gary Anderson. Despite a 145 finish in the 11th leg, he was unable to match Littler’s consistent high scoring and clinical finishing.
In the other semi-final, Price secured a 17-10 win against world number three Gian van Veen. Price established an early lead, taking a 4-1 advantage. Although Van Veen managed to narrow the gap to 6-4, Price regained control, eventually moving to a 15-9 lead before closing out the match.
Final performance and future ambitions
Littler entered the final as the favourite. He quickly established a lead, claiming the first mini-session 4-1, which included a 167 finish in the fourth leg. He extended his lead to 8-2, at one point averaging 114.74, close to Taylor’s record of 114.99 in any Matchplay game.
Although his level dipped slightly, Littler continued to win sessions 3-2. He moved within two legs of victory with a 148 checkout, his sixth ton-plus finish in the final. He also hit 12 180s in the final, setting a new tournament record of 66, surpassing his own total from the previous year.
This victory extends Littler’s winning streak in longer-format matches to 29 consecutive wins in games with 20 or more legs. His last defeat in such a match was against Luke Humphries in the 2024 World Championship final.
Price, who averaged 104.97 in the final, acknowledged Littler’s performance, stating, “Luke is one in a million, I threw everything at him.” Price’s strong week saw him climb to fourth in the order of merit and reclaim the Welsh number one spot from Jonny Clayton.
Following his win, Littler expressed his intention to attempt a clean sweep of the PDC ranking titles in the calendar year, a feat not previously achieved. This goal would require him to participate in and potentially win some Pro Tour events, including the Players Championship Finals in November.
Littler has skipped the first 24 Pro Tour events and has withdrawn from two scheduled for Hildesheim. This leaves eight remaining events for him to feature in Minehead. Qualification for the Players Championship Finals requires players to be among the top 64, with the current 64th player having £22,750 in prize money.
Former BDO world champion Mark Webster commented on Littler’s ambition, stating he “half expects” the teenager to achieve the clean sweep, noting that Littler’s game holds up in any format and scenario.
Source: bbc.co.uk
As News GB's Senior Football Correspondent, Lewis Hartnell reports on the Premier League, the EFL and the England national side for readers across the country. He reported on south-coast football for a regional title. He holds a degree in Sports Journalism from Solent University and completed an NCTJ diploma. Lewis lives in Southampton, where he watches youth football and follows the transfer market. “The week's training ground decides the weekend's headlines.”
