Luke Humphries is used to being enemies with Luke Littler on the darts circuit but soon they will put their rivalry aside for the World Cup of Darts – and he is excited by the prospect of them teaming up
Luke Humphries can’t wait to be Luke Littler’s team-mate at the World Cup of Darts next month – because they meet so often as rivals. Cool Hand Luke won the pair’s NINTH shoot-out in 105 days to reaffirm his credentials as world No.1 with a clinical 11-8 triumph in the BetMGM Premier League play-offs final at London’s O2 arena on Thursday night.
Humphries became only the fourth man to complete the Triple Crown of darts – world title, World Matchplay and Premier League champion – after Phil Taylor, Michael van Gerwen and Gary Anderson.
And his £305,000 prize money, including three £10k bonuses on the Thursday night circus tour, underlined him as 18-year-old sensation Littler’s biggest threat to dominating the sport.
Can I play you every week? Humphries would have no complaints if that’s how it unfolds – even if it risks diluting their box-office rivalry through sheer repetition.
He said: “If it’s me and Luke in the final of every tournament, you will see us playing each other 40 or 50 times a year. If we play in every Players Championship on the floor and European Tour event, plus every TV major and every Premier League, that’s what could happen.
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“But the only reason we play each other so much is because we end up making the finals – I don’t know how you stop it. People talk about changing the Premier League format, but why would I want to change it when I reached the final one year and won it the next?
“The magnitude of darts now is such that we could meet three or four times a week if we made every final. But if you are the two best players in the world, performing so well, and making the final every week, that’s how it works.
“I would not even dream of suggesting they change the Premier League format – it’s up to the PDC, they know what they are doing. The fans still come in their thousands, it still gets good numbers on Sky Sports. It’s up to people like me to work hard and win titles. Let’s not change it.”
Littler, who ran out of gas at the O2 after topping the Premier League table for almost four months, and Humphries will fly the flag for defending champions England at the World Cup of Darts in Frankfurt. Luke the Nuke said: “I can’t wait for the World Cup. He won it last year, so now he can lead me to victory.”
Phil Taylor and Adrian Lewis, the pairing who won it four times in five years between 2012-16, say the Two Lukes will take some stopping – and Humphries agrees.
He said: “It will take good darts to beat us. They will have to play well. We have got a lot of pressure on our shoulders, but we will thrive on it. I love Luke, I think he’s a good kid and a close friend of mine in darts. When I am around him, we always speak, we always chat. He’s a great kid.
“It’s always nice to share the stage with him. Of course, he will probably win more than I will ever win in my career because he’s so young and he’s a great talent. I am happy when I nab one here and there, but I am sure he will get me back many times in the future.
“It’s another final in the Luke and Luke saga. The next big one is the World Cup, between all the big nations, and I really want to win that again. I will hopefully guide Luke to World Cup glory, and I hope our rivalry continues. But there is always someone else that comes around the corner. In five years’ time there could be 10 players as good as me and Luke.
“I’d love to say over the next 10 years we will battle it out over many finals. We probably will. But there will probably be a lot of other names in and around and involved with us.”
