Luke Littler admits he still has a long road ahead before he can lay claim to the title of "the greatest ever" in darts, but he remains driven to tick off the milestones on his personal checklist. One of the most immediate objectives is to replicate his success at the World Matchplay in Blackpool, aiming for a back‑to‑back triumph.
He edged a step closer to that ambition when he secured a place in the quarter‑finals with an 11‑8 win over Nathan Aspinall. The match was a showcase of Littler’s burgeoning talent. He opened the encounter with a flawless nine‑dart finish, a feat that instantly electrified the crowd. Just a few legs later, in the fourth leg, he flirted with perfection again, missing only a double 15 to complete a second nine‑dart leg – a rarity that only the legendary Phil Taylor has managed on television.
Throughout the contest, Littler’s scoring was relentless. He recorded fourteen 180s, and his three‑dart average of 113.68 ranks as the second‑highest ever recorded at the World Matchplay, trailing only Phil Taylor’s 114.99 performance in 2010. Such statistics underline the magnitude of his display and hint at the potential for even greater achievements.
Littler’s broader goal is to become the first player since Michael van Gerwen in 2017 to defend the Blackpool title successfully. Van Gerwen’s back‑to‑back victories are a benchmark for consistency at the sport’s most demanding venues.
Currently, the world No. 1 holds an impressive collection of major titles – the World Darts Championship, the UK Open, the Premier League and the Masters – and is also defending the Matchplay, Grand Slam, Grand Prix and the Players Championship Finals. Littler’s quest to join that elite group is still in its early stages, but his recent performance suggests he is on the right trajectory.
When asked how close he feels to achieving "greatest ever" status, Littler reflected on the constant comparisons that have followed him since his breakout. "Obviously that talk's been going on since I first came onto the scene – will he be the next Phil Taylor?" he said. He tempered the hype with a personal benchmark: "I have always said, unless I win 16 World Championships and whatever else, then I think I will be the greatest.
Am I going to be around in 16 years' time? Who knows? If I win 16 back‑to‑back World Championships, I am gone." The match against Aspinall also highlighted how narrowly Littler missed a historic double nine‑dart achievement.
While his opening leg was perfect, a miss on double 15 in the fourth leg prevented him from joining the exclusive club of players who have thrown two televised nine‑dart finishes in a single match – a club that currently only includes Taylor. Littler believes his practice routine may have given him a subconscious hint that another perfect leg was within reach. "I just want to produce my best stats every game I play and I think I have done it again tonight," he explained. He noted that at one point he was the highest‑averaging player on the board, surpassing even Phil Taylor’s 114‑point benchmark, and acknowledged that records are made to be broken.
"Everyone is asking me how I did it, but I don’t really know. It was the first leg of the game and then to go on and miss double 15 again was really gutting," he admitted. A lighter moment emerged when Littler recounted a practice session at home. "I was playing a first‑to‑11 against the dart bot and missed the double 15.
My sister’s boyfriend shouted, ‘oh, you’re c**p, you’," he laughed. "I was saving it till later, and I hit it." Despite the disappointment of losing a thrilling encounter, Aspinall chose to view the defeat as motivation. He described the match as the best of his career and said it would reignite his hunger for future success.
In a post‑match statement on social media, Aspinall wrote: "The most enjoyable game of darts I have played in my career. I had absolutely everything and gave it my all. Fair play to Luke Littler, you were simply unreal.
Six treble‑less visits in 19 legs is the stat that jumps out to me. Wow.
That has certainly given me the hunger back. Support was unreal as per." The tournament moves into its second round on Wednesday, with four more high‑profile matches slated for live broadcast on Sky Sports. Cameron Menzies will look to build on his impressive win over world No. 2 Luke Humphries when he faces Ross Smith.
Gerwyn Price is set to clash with former world champion Rob Cross, while world No. 3 Gian van Veen will meet in‑form Dutchman Wessel Nijman, and James Wade will take on Ryan Searle. As the competition progresses, all eyes remain on Littler, who will be defending his World Matchplay crown.
Fans can follow the action on Sky Sports or stream the matches through the NOW platform, which offers live darts coverage without a long‑term contract. Whether Littler can convert his remarkable quarter‑final performance into another title remains to be seen, but his blend of talent, work ethic, and ambition suggests that the conversation about the sport’s future greats is far from over.