Teenage darts sensation Luke Littler has delivered a stinging response to German rival Ricardo Pietreczko after a mid-match comment fired him up during their Players Championship Finals clash in Minehead.
The Turning Point
The 18-year-old phenom found himself in early trouble, trailing 3-1 against the German number two in their first-to-ten legs encounter. However, Littler mounted an impressive comeback, winning nine of the subsequent twelve legs with a ton-plus average to secure a 10-6 victory and book his place in the quarter-finals.
While 'The Nuke's' recovery seemed almost expected given his recent form, the young star revealed afterwards that a specific remark from Pietreczko during the interval provided crucial motivation. The scores were level at five-all when the exchange occurred.
Mind Games Backfire
Speaking to ITV4 after the match, Littler explained the pivotal moment. "We've come back on at 5-5 and he said, before the caller came back on stage, 'I was only looking forward to getting one leg and now I've got five'", Littler revealed.
"I just said to myself, 'why say that?' Inside to myself I said 'you're getting it, I'm gonna win this game' and that's what I done and that's why I brought out the showboating", the teenager added, suggesting the comment served as motivation rather than intimidation.
Littler interpreted the remark as a deliberate attempt at psychological warfare. "It can't be anything else but to try and get in my head. But if he is trying to get in my head I'll do what I do, 180s and then I'll bring out the showboats", he stated confidently.
Statistical Dominance
The newly crowned world number one, who achieved the top ranking following his Grand Slam victory last week, backed up his words with impressive statistics. Littler averaged 102.67 throughout the match and hit six maximum 180s in another demonstration of his power scoring ability.
In a move that added salt to Pietreczko's wounds, Littler recreated the infamous 121 finish that had previously caused tension between the pair during last season's European Tour. He completed the checkout in signature style: bull, treble 7, bull.
Assessing his overall performance, Littler acknowledged room for improvement despite the victory. "Obviously I am never happy when I am losing, at 3-2 down I then got it back to five-all and I just had to kick on there", he told ITV4.
"I knew there were no more breaks, we were on (stage) until the end and I managed to get the job done. I was not the best on my doubles tonight, but I can sharpen up on them again tomorrow afternoon", Littler added, showing his characteristic self-awareness.
Luke Littler's next challenge comes in the form of world number nine Chris Dobey in Sunday's quarter-final. Should 'The Nuke' overcome Dobey, he will face the winner of the clash between Gerwyn Price and Daryl Gurney in the semi-finals.
The Players Championship Finals continue with Nathan Aspinall facing Josh Rock in another last-eight tie, while James Wade and Jermaine Wattimena complete the afternoon session lineup in Minehead.
