A dominant Luke Littler warned his rivals he is feeling at his best as he blew away Mensur Suljovic to cruise into the fourth round of the World Darts Championship.
The defending champion and world No 1 produced a ruthless performance to beat Suljovic 4-0 at Alexandra Palace.
Littler, 18, averaged more than 107 – his best ever at the tournament – and had a 71 per cent checkout rate to power through to the last 16, where he will meet either former world champion Rob Cross or Damon Heta.
Sujlovic, criticised for his slow play by Joe Cullen after beating the Welshman in round two, did not win a leg until the third set.
‘I’m really happy with it. The finishing was good – 71%, I don’t think I’ve seen that in my PDC career,’ Littler told Sky Sports.
‘I felt so settled tonight. Mensur at his pace, I kind of got myself into a rhythm that matches it – slower than usual but it worked out.
Luke Littler thrashed Mensur Suljovic to reach the fourth round of the World Darts Championship
‘That’s the best I’ve felt [at the World Championship], I think even last year’s tournament and the one before that. That’s the most I’ve been settled and it shows with the average, the finishing and the ton-plus checkouts.’
Littler won the first six legs to breeze into a 2-0 lead before Suljovic finally got on the board in the third.
It was to be one of only three legs won by the Austrian, who could not live with the reigning champion despite his excellent average of 96.
Littler is aiming to become only the second player to retain the world title, following Gary Anderson achieving the feat in 2015 and 2016.
