Reigning World Champion Luke Littler continues his imperial procession toward title defence, dispatching Krzysztof Ratajski with ruthless efficiency on a night when another young force of nature, Gian van Veen, seized the headlines and tore up the script.
Break the teenager. Plant a seed of doubt. He couldn’t. Littler punished the hesitation, broke immediately, and within moments the contest had slipped into a familiar pattern of inevitability. Three sets vanished. In the fourth, Ratajski was inspired, sublime even, yet still could not prise open the door. From there, the challenge morphed from unlikely to near-impossible.
The evening began precisely as prophecy foretold. The Nuke versus the birthday boy. Youth versus experience. Velocity versus vigilance. And while the scoreboard will forever read as a whitewash, it does the Polish Eagle a mild injustice. Ratajski did not roll over. He resisted. He even threatened. But in this unforgiving arena, threats without conversion are little more than echoes.The fulcrum lay at the very start. Ratajski won the bull and, with it, a gilded invitation to apply early pressure.
And here is the frightening part. Littler did this without detonating the afterburners. A measured ton-plus average. Better than 50 percent on the doubles. Ten maximums. A big fish speared for good measure. All achieved while operating several gears below apocalyptic. The boy emperor scarcely broke sweat.
There will be no Luke versus Luke showdown this World Championship. That possibility was obliterated by the serene savagery of Gian van Veen, who swept aside Luke Humphries and stormed into the semi-finals. A Dutch victory? Plausible. A 5–1 dismantling? Few saw that coming. Perhaps not even the man wielding the darts.Before the match, Sky Sports pundit and former Lakeside champion Mark Webster suggested the five-leg sets would decide it. He was prophetic. In set one, Humphries had the throw, stood on the brink at 2–1, and blinked. Van Veen struck first. The world number two roared back after the interval to level matters.
Balance restored. Or so it seemed.Then the nightmare loop began. Time and again Humphries would seize the opening leg on throw. Time and again he would be broken at the death. Van Veen, cold-eyed and merciless, converted pressure into progress. Three-one. Then four-one.
From that precipice, even Cool Hand could not climb back. The doubles told the tale. Humphries fashioned chances. Van Veen buried them. Clinical beats courageous every time.Earlier, the afternoon belonged to attrition. Four men entered.
Three sought a maiden semi-final. Only one emerged. Ryan Searle. Against Jonny Clayton, Heavy Metal carried the bookmakers’ favour despite the lower seeding, buoyed by flawless form and an untouched set record. Neither man hit the heavens, but Searle did enough, and sometimes that is the mark of maturity. He burst into a 3–0 lead, loosened his grip briefly, then tightened it again. No fireworks. No fuss. Just the biggest payday of his career and a date with destiny. Next stop: Littler.
The crescendo arrived late. Gary Anderson versus Justin Hood. Four sets in, parity reigned. Then the Flying Scotsman ignited. What followed was incandescent. A trio of sets delivered at ferocious velocity, averages soaring north of the ton, the kind of purple patch Anderson would bottle if he could and splash on before every match like a lethal cologne.
Hood’s dream debut ended, but not in disgrace.For the Somerset sensation, December delivered riches beyond imagination. A war chest ample enough to launch that Chinese restaurant dream. A vertiginous climb up the rankings. Tour card security. And a fanbase forged in fairy-tale fire.
The stage is set. The stakes are colossal. Youth, experience, destiny and defiance now collide. And somewhere beneath the chandeliers of Alexandra Palace, history sharpens its knives.
QUARTER-FINAL RESULTS
Ryan Searle 5-2 Jonny Clayton
Gary Anderson 5-2 Justin Hood
Luke Littler 5-0 Krzysztof Ratajski
Luke Humphries 1-5 Gian van Veen
