Luke Littler absolutely smoked Josh Rock in their World Matchplay quarter-final, grabbing a dominant 16-7 win in Blackpool. This dude is defending his title like he was born to do it, racking up an insane 17 180s and pulling off a scoring average of 109.57. Seriously, that number alone tells you everything you need to know about the show he put on.
The Kid Is Just Different
Rock actually tried to keep pace early on, trading breaks with the world number one to tie things up at 5-5. But then, Littler just flipped a switch. The 19-year-old reeled off five straight legs, and from that moment, Rock had no shot. It was over. Littler was in dazzling form, just cruising into the semi-finals. After that performance, where he also dropped 17 180s with that ridiculous 109.57 scoring average, Littler was chilling, saying, “At the minute, everything’s going to plan.” He’s feeling good, telling everyone, “I can afford to miss a few doubles because the scoring’s there.” That’s the confidence of a champion right there, even if he did give some “fair play” props to Rock for putting up a good fight.
Van Duijvenbode Fights His Way Through
While Littler was making it look easy, his semi-final opponent, Dirk van Duijvenbode, had a much tougher path. The unseeded Dutchman had to survive a full-on late surge from Gary Anderson in their quarter-final, hanging on for a 16-13 win. Anderson, who won the Matchplay back in 2018, nearly clawed back an eight-leg deficit, even hitting a 154 checkout during his rally. Van Duijvenbode has had some wild rides, too, like when he admitted to shaking “like a little child crying for his mum” in an earlier match against Michael van Gerwen, letting his compatriot back in after leading 8-4. On Thursday, he again led 8-4, dropped two legs, then stormed back to a 14-6 lead by winning six straight. But Anderson made him work for it, pushing him hard for a whole nine more legs before Van Duijvenbode finally closed it out.
So, it’s Littler against Van Duijvenbode in Saturday’s semi-final. Can the unseeded player stop the Littler hype train, or is the defending champion just too good right now? And don’t forget, we still have Gian van Veen versus James Wade, and Gerwyn Price against Ross Smith in Friday’s quarter-finals. The stakes are getting higher with every throw, and we’re all watching to see who earns their shot at the title.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
Leave a Reply