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You will be seeing plenty of Batman and Wonder Woman over the coming weeks; Spiderman, Mr Incredible, perhaps even a Ninja Turtle or two. Yes, Christmas at Alexandra Palace is always a good time for spotting superheroes. But only one of them will not be wearing a costume.
In fact, it is when he is in his normal human clothes, doing normal human things, that Luke Littler looks at his most incongruous. Standing with his fellow Manchester United fans in the away end at Molineux. Proudly brandishing a fresh driving certificate after finally passing his test. And it is in these more unguarded moments that you remember that the man they call The Nuke, the phenomenon who has detonated the sport of darts, is really still just a kid, a regular lad from Warrington with a deeply irregular talent.
Two years after the tournament that changed everything for ever, Littler returns to north London as the defending champion, the world No 1, the indisputable titan of the game. The UK Open champion, the World Matchplay champion, the World Grand Prix champion, the double Grand Slam winner, the Players Championship Finals winner. He has won more than twice as much ranking money as his closest competitor. But he would trade it all in for a successful title defence on 3 January, becoming the first man to retain the world title since Gary Anderson a decade ago.
And frankly, who will stop him? Who might stop him? Who genuinely believes they can stop him? Over the months an irresistible aura seems to have grown around the boy king, a relentless consistency on both rings, a sense of inevitability and predestination that paralyses his opponents’ game and stirs his own, the unswerving belief that he can win from any position, in whatever way he wants.
Two sets down to Gerwyn Price at the World Grand Prix, 7-2 down to Jermaine Wattimena at the World Matchplay, 5-0 down to James Wade in the final of the same tournament, 9-6 down to Josh Rock at the Grand Slam. Each time Littler looked down but never did he look truly beaten, aware – as was everyone else – that there is not a player on earth who can live with his surges of acceleration, those bursts of four and five-visit legs that leave a trail of utter devastation in their wake.
Every single member of the chasing pack bears the scars of multiple Littler maulings. Luke Humphries, the world No 2 and still theoretically his closest challenger, had a cathartic victory over Littler in the Premier League final in May but has since lost to him in three straight finals. Michael van Gerwen has lost eight of his past 11 against him, including last year’s bruising world final. Price has been defeated seven times in a row. Rock has never beaten him.
And so, paradoxically, the biggest threat to a Littler coronation may lie earlier in the draw, in the shorter format games, before the teenage terror has had time to build a head of steam. Last year Ryan Meikle and Ryan Joyce gave him more trouble than anyone else later in the tournament. Darius Labanauskas of Lithuania, his first-round opponent this time, can be safely discounted. But Joe Cullen or Bradley Brooks could lurk dangerously in round three, while his potential fourth-round opponent, Damon Heta, can boast a nine-darter on the Alexandra Palace stage.
Three challengers … and a dark horse
ShowLuke Humphries
The 2024 champion remains Littler’s closest rival and beat him to this year’s Premier League title, although has looked a little weary in recent months, losing his last three major finals – and the world No 1 ranking.
Gerwyn Price
One of the few players with both the game and the personality to rattle Littler. But it’s been three years since his last major title, and there remain questions over his consistency in the longer formats.
Josh Rock
The rise of Littler has allowed this former youth prodigy to rebuild his game under the radar, and a stunning World Cup win with Northern Ireland displayed his ability to perform under pressure. Has all the talent, but still awaiting his big breakthrough.
Dirk van Duijvenbode
Volatile, larger-than-life Dutchman whose promising career was derailed by a persistent shoulder injury. Now back to full fitness and showing cautious glimpses of his scintillating, 180-hungry best. Jonathan Liew
If the crown unexpectedly slips, who might instead pounce? Humphries, Van Gerwen, Price and Rock look best-placed, and to those you might add the brilliant young Dutchman Gian van Veen, the only man with a winning head-to-record against Littler on the senior tour. Beyond those a second tier of candidates might include Stephen Bunting, Nathan Aspinall, Chris Dobey, Anderson, Jonny Clayton, Danny Noppert and James Wade. Meanwhile the former champions Michael Smith, Rob Cross and Peter Wright have all endured torrid years and while all are capable of springing a shock on their day, it’s hard to envisage any of them going the distance.
As for Beau Greaves, the greatest female talent the sport has ever seen, it is probably best to restrain the hype train for a few more days. Her dominance of the Women’s Series has been extraordinary, her talent is frightening and at last month’s Grand Slam she ran Anderson and Van Gerwen achingly close. But she is still learning her trade on the big stage, the consistency and composure and killer instinct that will determine her true ceiling. She plays double major champion Daryl Gurney in round one. If she gets past that test, you officially have permission to get excited.
But the rise of Greaves, one of a record five women in this year’s tournament, is symbolic of a broader trend in the sport. Gradually and by degrees, darts has broken out of its traditional demographic and laid down roots on every continent. The field takes in the 18-year-old Littler and the 71-year-old veteran Paul Lim; Kenya and Argentina are represented for the first time; German fans make up a quarter of all ticket sales at this year’s tournament. There will be YouTube stars and influencers in the crowd, record-breaking audiences on television, a new generation of players who learned their trade not in the pub or the working man’s club but the bedroom and the live stream.
Truly this is a sport for everyone, and with a prize to match. Along with the Sid Waddell Trophy this year’s winner will take home a record £1m, the biggest jackpot ever seen in the sport, around double the prize for winning the Tour de France or the world snooker championship.
And perhaps this largesse strikes you as incongruous or absurd, an offensively large amount of money for throwing arrows into a wall. But then darts has always been a place of wild schemes and big dreams, where ordinary folk perform extraordinary feats. A palace built for the people; a stage fit for superheroes.
