Luke Littler is just two matches away from glory after securing his spot in the semi-final of the PDC World Championship.
Littler was taking on friend and mentor Nathan Aspinall on stage at Ally Pally in the quarter final of the competition as the pair put on quite a show.
The teenage prodigy was looking to cement his status as the favourite to win the Sid Waddell trophy and set up a huge semi-final against Stephen Bunting.
And ‘The Nuke’ did exactly that, beating Aspinall 5-2.
Littler stormed to a two-set lead, before The Asp clawed one back to make it 2-1.
The 17-year-old then secured the next two sets, before another fightback from Aspinall saw him move to within two sets of the teenager.
But Littler showed his quality and earned his spot in the semi-finals with an average of 101.54.
He will now play fellow fan favourite Stephen Bunting on Thursday night for a chance to replicate last year’s run by reaching the final.
But he will hope to go one step further than in his defeat to Luke Humphries, as he could play the winner of Michael Van Gerwen‘s semi-final with Chris Dobey if he progresses.
The final will take place on January 3, but he will first face the formidable test of ‘The Bullet’.
Reflecting on the win, Littler told Sky Sports: “I think we both played very well there but I’m so glad to win.
“The crowd were chanting for Nathan, they wanted a comeback but I had to finish it.
“I wouldn’t say it’s hard to focus. When we each won a set, we gave a fist bump but once we hear ‘game on’, that’s when it’s game on. Afterwards we’ll be fine.”
On the prospect of facing Bunting, the Nuke added: “The fans have been good for me tonight, they were also good for Stephen and they can take their pick for who they want to support tomorrow.
“I can see quite a few Nuke shirts in here so I might have the better.
“You play, go to sleep, wake up and you play again. I don’t really like having days off because I don’t practice. I know I’ll be back on tomorrow and I’ll be up for it again.”
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