Luke Littler has admitted he lost his head during his fourth-round PDC World Darts Championship win over Rob Cross, after the crowd at Alexandra Palace turned on him. The 18-year-old defending champion beat Cross 4-2 but was booed and jeered throughout the match, a new experience for the usually popular player.
After hitting the winning darts, Littler ran around the stage gesturing to the crowd, then said in his on-stage interview: “You guys pay for tickets and you pay for my prize money, so thank you for my money, thank you for booing me.” He later acknowledged the reaction was excessive, saying: “I think I lost my head. It’s still on there. Two years ago I think I would have started throwing my darts left-handed, but that is how much I have grown.”
Littler, who averaged 106.5 and hit 17 180s, said the hostility fuelled his performance. “It definitely fuelled me up and it made me play better. There was that much adrenaline, that much emotion, the anger. I am glad I won,” he added. He also noted it was the first time at the world championships the crowd did not want him to win, and he will “expect the worst” on New Year’s Day.
Littler will face Poland’s Krzysztof Ratajski in the quarter-finals on Thursday, after Ratajski beat Luke Woodhouse 4-2 on Tuesday afternoon. Littler remains on course to retain his title, but admitted he still has learning to do in handling hostile crowds.
