Luke Littler continued his remarkable rise in darts by defeating Dirk van Duijvenbode 6-2 in the first round of the Dutch Masters on Friday night. The 17-year-old, who celebrated his birthday on Sunday, faced a hostile crowd in Den Bosch as Dutch fans loudly cheered van Duijvenbode and booed Littler.
Undeterred, Littler hit a 180 on his first visit and maintained composure throughout. Despite a stare from van Duijvenbode after a poor visit, Littler shrugged it off with a drink and sealed the match with a 150 checkout. He landed four 180s to none from his opponent and averaged 90 per three darts.
Littler's victory follows his runner-up finish at the PDC World Championship and his first senior title at the Bahrain Masters last week, where he beat Michael van Gerwen 8-5 in the final. World No.1 Luke Humphries cautioned that Littler will face tougher tests, saying, 'He's only faced six players so far... but if he keeps getting better, he could dominate the sport.'
Several top British players were knocked out in the opening round, including Rob Cross, Michael Smith, Nathan Aspinall, and Peter Wright. Gerwyn Price advanced by beating Dimitri Van den Bergh 6-3.
