Littler Kicks Off Belgian Open Title Defence with Convincing 6-2 Victory

Luke Littler commenced his title defence at the Belgian Darts Open with an impressive 6-2 win over Boris Krcmar, achieving a 104.70 average. This victory came just two days after his remarkable comeback against Gerwyn Price in the Premier League, where he recovered from 5-0 down to win 6-5. Littler dominated the early stages, moving 4-0 ahead against Krcmar with the help of two double 19 checkouts. Although he faced a slight setback, missing five match darts in the seventh leg, Littler rebounded strongly with consecutive 180s in the eighth leg to secure the win. He will now face Niels Zonneveld in the last 16, who edged out Mike De Decker 6-5. Littler expressed his affection for the venue, stating, 'I love it here... My first European Tour event was here. I want to win it again, and performances like that will put me up there.' The 19-year-old threw six 180s throughout the match and is looking forward to his next challenge. Elsewhere, Luke Humphries overcame a significant scare to defeat Dirk van Duijvenbode 6-4, while Michael van Gerwen and Jonny Clayton also secured 6-4 and 6-3 wins, respectively. However, James Wade and Stephen Bunting were eliminated in the second round by Cristo Reyes and Andy Baetens. The tournament will continue on Sunday, with Littler facing Zonneveld in the afternoon session.