In the electrifying cauldron of Alexandra Palace, teenage darts sensation Luke Littler is on the brink of etching his name deeper into history. The reigning PDC World Darts Championship king, fresh off a ruthless demolition of Poland’s Krzysztof Ratajski, dropped a bombshell that left fans and pundits reeling: he hadn’t touched a dart for nearly three days before his quarter-final masterclass. “I’ve not been practising for nearly two and a half, three days,” Littler confessed with a sheepish grin in the post-match presser. “We’ve not brought our dartboard down, so I can’t really practise. That’s my own fault, just being lazy in the house.”
Picture this: the 18-year-old from Warrington, world number one and defending champion, lounging at home over the New Year’s break, tweaking his throw on the fly during a high-stakes clash. Yet, against a gritty Ratajski—who had sliced through the draw like a hot knife—he produced a 5-0 whitewash, averaging a blistering 100.04, slamming 10 maximums, and nailing 55% of his doubles. His first 170 “big fish” checkout of the tournament sealed the opener in style, and a near nine-darter in the third set had the Ally Pally faithful on their feet. “There’s a 100 average there and I’ve hit a 107 and a 103, but it didn’t feel like it,” he admitted. “The guys backstage said I was averaging 101 in the first two sets and I said it couldn’t be as I just didn’t feel good at all. I tried changing my throw here, there and everywhere but most importantly, I got the job done.”
Littler’s nonchalant brilliance underscores his meteoric rise. This marks his third straight semi-final run at the World Championship, where he’s lost just once on the big stage—the 2024 final to Luke Humphries. He’s racked up 47 180s already, turning every match into a clinic. But the road hasn’t been all cheers. Echoes of boos from his last-16 thriller against Rob Cross lingered into the quarters, sparked by his cheeky retort to the crowd: “Am I bothered? Really, am I bothered?! Really not bothered! Can I just say one thing? You guys pay for the tickets and you pay for my prize money so thank you!” A few jeers greeted his walk-on, but Littler clapped back—literally. “As soon as I got on stage, I clapped everyone just so they knew, I want them on my side again,” he said. “They were on my side tonight and I got the job done. Obviously, it is a new year, first day of the year. A few boos here and there. But as soon as I got on stage, the crowd was absolutely unbelievable.”
Now, the plot thickens. Standing between Littler and a shot at back-to-back titles is fellow Englishman Ryan Searle, the 20th seed and “Heavy Metal” himself—a nod to his rock-star nickname and hefty 32-gram darts. The 38-year-old from Devon has been a revelation, storming to the semis without dropping a set until a gritty 5-2 quarter-final win over fifth seed Jonny Clayton. Searle’s path mirrors Littler’s resilience: he’s dropped just two sets total, showcasing ice-cool finishing and unyielding power. But there’s more to his story than darts. Searle battles Autosomal Dominant Optic Atrophy (ADOA), a rare, incurable genetic eye condition that thins the optic nerve, blurring vision, muting colors, and worsening progressively. “It’s been bad for as long as I can remember,” he revealed. “There’s no cure for what I’ve got so I’m stuck with it. I wear contact lenses now to try and take a bit of the blurriness away from my vision. But sometimes on stage I’m asking the caller what I’ve scored and it puts me in a bit of a difficult position.”
Searle’s fight extends beyond the oche. He’s raised over £10,000 for the Cure ADOA Foundation by raffling opponents’ shirts, hoping to inspire others. “If I can inspire people that maybe can’t see as well to pick up the game, then it means a lot to me,” he said. It’s a hereditary curse—passed to both his children, hitting his daughter hardest. “When it gets to about six feet, she can see, but after that her vision gets really bad.” Ironic, then, that his opponent Littler underwent childhood surgery for strabismus, correcting misaligned eyes. Two warriors with vision challenges, dueling for darts immortality.
Their head-to-head? Littler dominated Searle earlier this year at the World Matchplay in a one-sided affair. “He’s playing well, he’s in my way and I’m in his so hopefully we can have a good game,” Littler noted. “He hasn’t dropped a set yet, so hopefully the first set tomorrow is the one he does drop. I want it to be one-sided again. But if Ryan tests me, I’m up for it.” Littler boasts a perfect 13-0 record in major semi-finals, often averaging over 104. Searle, a seven-time Players Championship winner, enters as the ultimate underdog, but his form screams upset potential.
The semis ignite tonight: Littler vs. Searle kicks off after Gary Anderson clashes with Dutch rising star Gian van Veen, who stunned Humphries 5-1. The victor awaits in Sunday’s £500,000 showdown. “I always want to be a character! Hit big finishes, do things differently,” Littler declared, exuding the swagger that’s revolutionized darts. From lazy days to legendary nights, the kid from Warrington is primed to roar. Ally Pally, brace yourselves—this semi-final could be seismic.
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