Luke Littler has withdrawn from the Flanders Darts Trophy in Antwerp, Belgium, after winning the Czech Darts Open last weekend.
The Nuke, 19, won the competition last year but has opted out of playing in the European Tour event.
Littler has qualified for the European Championship in Germany, and his withdrawal means Belgian Kim Huybrechts can compete in front of his home crowd.
The 19-year-old beat Josh Rock last year in the final of the Flanders Darts Trophy 8-7.
Read Also: Man charged under the National Security Act with assisting Russian intelligence services
The world No1 hadn’t played on the European Tour since March before last weekend, but remarkably won his sixth European Tour event in just 16 appearances on the circuit.
He landed £35,000 for winning the competition, saying: “It’s good to be back and I’m back with a bang.”
His road to the final was nothing short of dominant, even if it started with a wobble.
Littler found himself 3-1 down against Krzysztof Ratajski in the last 16, but flicked a switch and reeled off five legs on the bounce to win 6-3, extending his perfect record against the Polish thrower to six from six.
LATEST SPORTS NEWS
- Former F1 star slams Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari ‘for not playing as a team’
- Women’s tennis tour facing bankruptcy as investment plummets
- Rory McIlroy admits to ‘bad habits’ before making bold 2027 prediction ahead of Irish Open
From there, the youngster was in cruise control.
Danny Noppert was on the receiving end of a 6-0 whitewash in the quarter-finals, with Littler giving the Dutchman absolutely nothing to work with.
Then came three-time world champion Michael van Gerwen in the semis, and the result was barely any kinder.
Littler comfortably won 7-3 to set up the blockbuster showdown with Humphries that everyone wanted to see.
The final itself was a proper battle, with Humphries, chasing a third consecutive Czech Open crown, edging ahead 4-3 against his younger rival.
But Littler responded in devastating fashion, stringing together four legs in a row to surge into a 7-4 lead.
Humphries clawed it back to 7-6 and had two darts at double 16 to level the match, but couldn’t find the target when it mattered most.
Littler pounced, finishing 39 to seal the deal.
“It’s what the fans deserved, obviously the two best going at it in a final once again. I’m glad I’ve won,” he said.
Humphries, meanwhile, revealed he’d nearly withdrawn from the tournament entirely: “I was going to pull out Thursday, and I made the final, so I can’t be too upset with myself because I did really well.”
With the trophy safely in his hands, Littler’s attention has already shifted to Dortmund in October, saying it is “the one I’m chasing”.
Our Standards: The GB News Editorial Charter
