Luke Littler has effortlessly booked his place in a third successive PDC World Darts Championship final, dismantling Ryan Searle 6-1 in a one-sided semi-final at London's Alexandra Palace.
A Gathering Storm Proves Too Much for Searle
The curse of being Luke Littler, it seems, is that staggering performances begin to feel almost routine. The 18-year-old defending champion made light work of 20th seed Ryan Searle, averaging 105.4 and winning 20 of the 28 legs played. For Searle, a player enjoying a breakthrough tournament, finding himself in the path of Littler's "gathering purple storm" in north London was severe misfortune.
There was an air of inevitability from the moment Littler, having lost the first set, found his rhythm. After Searle claimed the opener thanks to two missed doubles from Littler, the match was on throw until the end of the third set. A poor leg from Searle on his own throw allowed Littler to break for a 2-1 lead, and the defending champion started the fourth set with a show-stopping 180, holding his pose for effect. That moment, in retrospect, broke the contest's back.
The Pursuit of Perfection Overshadows the Contest
By the closing stages, Littler was no longer competing against Searle in a meaningful sense but was instead chasing history. Twice he went six perfect darts into a potential nine-darter, and once he went seven perfect, only to be denied. He seemed vaguely annoyed by the near-misses, only brightening when a TV interviewer suggested he might be saving the feat for Saturday's final.
Searle, who will rise to world number eight after this tournament, struggled to find his best. He averaged 93 and missed too many crucial doubles, his darts not sitting right in the board. His body language turned negative, a clear signal for a predator like Littler. A solitary moment of defiance came when Searle took out a 170 finish after Littler's seven-perfect-dart attempt, earning the biggest cheer of the night. It was, however, merely a postponement of the inevitable.
Searle's Breakthrough Overshadowed by Littler's March
This tournament has been a profound success for Ryan Searle, showcasing new levels to his game and character. He has spoken movingly about playing with Autosomal Dominant Optic Atrophy, an incurable genetic eye condition that affects his vision and often forces him to ask the referee what he has scored.
Yet the unique pressure of a major championship semi-final, with its long hours of waiting and reflection, proved a trial too far against an opponent of Littler's calibre. The match continued a curious trend of one-sided semi-finals at the PDC Worlds, with the last seven all ending 6-2, 6-1, or 6-0.
Littler, barely breaking a sweat, now awaits the winner of the second semi-final between Gian van Veen and Gary Anderson. He remains the overwhelming favourite to add a second world title to the incredible haul of majors—including the World Matchplay and UK Open—he has collected in the past 12 months. While sport offers no certainties, and concepts like destiny are mere constructs, a persistent problem remains: nobody seems to have told Luke Littler that yet.
