In the electrifying confines of Leicester’s Mattioli Arena, where the spotlight burns bright and the crowd’s roar can shatter resolve, the BoyleSports World Grand Prix quarter-finals delivered a spectacle that will echo through darts lore for years. It was a night where strategy met audacity, and Gerwyn Price, the battle-hardened Welsh Iceman, found his calculated edge melting under the pressure of Luke Littler’s unyielding comeback. The 39-year-old former world champion, known for his psychological warfare and pinpoint precision, surged to a commanding 2-0 lead in sets against the teenage sensation. But what followed was a whirlwind of drama, culminating in a tactic so unorthodox it left commentators—and fans—reeling in disbelief.
Price, the 2020 Grand Prix victor and a perennial thorn in the side of rising stars, entered the fray with his trademark intensity. He’d dismantled opponents en route to this stage, including a dominant 3-0 dismantling of Josh Rock in the second round, where his averages soared and his finishes were flawless. Against Littler, the world No. 1 and reigning PDC World Champion at just 18, Price struck first blood. The opening set was a masterclass: Price broke early and held serve, clinching it 3-1 with clinical doubles that left Littler, usually unflappable, looking uncharacteristically rattled. The second set followed suit, Price easing to another 3-1 victory as Littler’s darts danced frustratingly close to the wire without finding the mark. The Warrington wonderkid, who’d cruised through his earlier matches—including a 3-0 whitewash of Mike De Decker—seemed on the ropes, his sore throat adding to the visible strain as he trudged off stage during the break.
The arena buzzed with anticipation; Price’s mind games were in full swing—those lingering stares, the deliberate pauses that could unnerve a statue. He’d beaten Littler before, in the Premier League and beyond, and whispered pre-match bravado like “I’m not scared of anybody” hung in the air. But darts is a game of razor-thin margins, and the third set ignited Littler’s fire. Breaking Price’s throw with a gutsy 72 on double 18, Littler clawed his way back. Then came the moment that defined the madness: in the second leg, Price faltered spectacularly, missing his first six attempts at double to even start his scoring. Littler, sensing blood, unleashed a 180 to leave just 134 for the leg—a near-certain win. With the writing on the wall, Price did the unthinkable. Instead of conceding gracefully or scrambling, he turned the oche into his personal practice board, firing darts at double 13—a shot irrelevant to the leg but one he’d been struggling with.
Sky Sports commentator Mark Webster could scarcely believe his eyes, his voice rising in astonishment: “Is my interpretation right there that Gerwyn Price hit the double 13 with his second dart and then just thought, ‘oh I’ll have more practice on the 13 because I’ve been missing’. That is what he is doing! That is what he is doing! He is giving up the leg to get some practice in on double 13.” The crowd gasped; it was a tactic straight out of the surreal—double or nothing, but in this case, nothing for the leg at hand. Price’s gamble, born perhaps of frustration or a desperate bid to reset his rhythm, backfired spectacularly. Littler coolly finished the leg and swept the set 3-0, injecting life into his campaign.
The momentum shifted like a tide turning. The fourth set was a gritty exchange, legs traded blow for blow, but Littler leveled the match at 2-2, forcing a decider that had the arena on its feet. Price, now the one under siege, missed three crucial darts that could have sealed his semi-final berth. The final set was a pressure cooker: breaks flew, scores locked at 2-2, and in the decisive leg, Price again struggled with doubles. But Littler, the prodigy with ice in his veins, stepped up for a breathtaking 152 checkout—treble 20, treble 19, double 16—to snatch a 3-2 victory. The roar was deafening; at 18, Littler had orchestrated one of the greatest comebacks in Grand Prix history, advancing to face Jonny Clayton in the semis.
Reflecting on the chaos, Littler didn’t hold back on the oddity of Price’s move: “It was very, very strange. Obviously I wasn’t happy going 2-0 down. First and second set I was just on the wire every single time. I couldn’t get those doubles in. My sore throat is definitely worth it! I went 2-0 up and I thought I’m guaranteed on my throw to throw for the match. I said to myself this has to go and it went.” Wait—no, in the heat of the post-match glow, Littler’s words captured his own resilience amid the strangeness, acknowledging the early deficit and his triumphant surge.
For Price, the defeat was a bitter pill. The Welshman, who’d eyed a second Grand Prix title after a year of near-misses, vented his frustration on social media: “Wow gutted. This is why we need to play majors in neutral venues/countries. Luke was great in patches at the right time in the end, but I lost that one again.” His lament hinted at perceived biases in the crowd’s fervor, but it couldn’t overshadow the self-inflicted wound of that practice session mid-leg. The tactic, dubbed “crazy” by observers, sparked debates across the darts community—was it genius disrupted, or a sign of cracking under pressure?
This clash wasn’t just about arrows; it was a generational showdown. Littler, the Nuke, continues his meteoric rise—world champ, Premier League winner, and now a semi-finalist in his Grand Prix debut. Price, the veteran with a trophy cabinet to envy, retreats to regroup, his mind games and bold ploys adding layers to his complex legacy. Elsewhere in the tournament, the semis promise more fireworks: world No. 1 Luke Humphries outlasted Cameron Menzies 3-1, Gary Anderson edged Danny Noppert in four sets, and Dirk van Duijvenbode blanked Daryl Gurney 3-0. With £500,000 on the line and £100,000 for the victor, the double-start format—demanding precision from the off—has amplified the drama.
In the end, Price’s double-or-nothing stunt didn’t pay off, but it immortalized the match as a classic. Darts thrives on such moments: the audacious, the unexpected, the human. As Littler marches on, the oche whispers a timeless truth—fortune favors the bold, but only if the darts land true.
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