World No.1 Luke Littler suffered a shock semi-final defeat in the World Youth Championship, losing 6-5 to Cam Crabtree in a last-leg shootout at Minehead. The reigning back-to-back world champion missed out on the chance to add a second World Youth Championship crown to his trophy cabinet and the £12,000 prize money for the champion.
Littler's comeback falls short
Littler came from 2-0 down to level the game against the 23-year-old, but Crabtree held on to set up a final against Jan Schmidt. 'The Nuke' appeared to have turned the match around when he won three legs on the bounce, including a brilliant 164 checkout and two 14-darters.
However, Crabtree hit back with a 92 and a ton out to lead 5-4. Littler took out 117 to force a final-leg decider, but Crabtree's 16-darter hold saw him over the finish line with a 97.91 average.
Road to the semi-final
Littler eased through his group with three wins before staging a comeback from 3-0 down to beat 16-year-old Lewis Cook in the first knockout round. Victories against David Fidler (6-1) and a 6-4 quarter-final win over Archie Self set up the semi-final clash with world No.68 Crabtree.
Crabtree, nicknamed 'Shazam', qualified for the World Championship last year and also featured in the UK Open, Grand Slam and Players Championship Finals.
Youth title history and next steps
Littler's quest for a second youth title came after he beat Gian van Veen 6-4 in the 2023 World Youth Championship final to book his place at Ally Pally, where he enjoyed a breakout run to the final, only to be defeated by Luke Humphries. He didn't enter the 2024 edition before returning to the youth scene the following year, but he was beaten by Beau Greaves in the semi-final, who eventually lost to Van Veen in the final.
At just 19, Littler will still be eligible to play in the next four editions of the tournament. It was his first return to action since his shock defeat to Luke Woodhouse in the opening round of the World Grand Prix last week. The Warrington sensation's dream of clean sweeping the major titles this year was ended by Jonny Clayton in the quarter-final of the World Series Finals last month.
