Adrian Lewis thinks Luke Littler will have no chance of challenging Phil Taylor’s spot in darts’ history books if he doesn’t maintain the will to win that has seen him take the sport by storm
Adrian Lewis believes Luke Littler has to be “greedy” in his darts dominance if he wants to join the ranks of the greatest players in history. The 18-year-old has been a phenomenon on the oche, winning multiple major titles in just a few years.
‘The Nuke’ is the current PDC world champion and has been an exceptional inspiration for youngsters looking to get into darts. So it’s no wonder that people are already comparing the teenager to the greats of Phil Taylor, Eric Bristow and Michael van Gerwen.
But according to Lewis, there’s one thing he must do if he wants to challenge these historic figures in the long term – and that is to win greedily. Speaking to Mirror Sport via The Escapist, Jackpot is adamant Littler has to be selfish on the oche and not let anybody else get in on the act of lifting silverware in the near future.
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Asked if Littler has the potential longevity, Lewis replied: “I really do think he has. It just depends how hungry he stays. I think you’ve got to be greedy. Greedy for winning. If you can maintain that you can do anything.”
The English darts hero went on to praise Littler for his tournament scheduling, noting that the youngster seems to have it all figured out early on. Lewis added: “I think he’s doing things the right way. He isn’t playing in all the tournaments.
“That does take away a lot of the enjoyment if you’re playing all the time. Win, lose or draw, it all gets a bit samey when you’re playing five or six days a week.”
So far, Littler has clinched the UK Open, Grand Slam, Premier League of Darts, World Matchplay and the World Series. He has also secured plenty of other tournament titles, including the Belgian Darts Open, Poland Darts Masters and Austrian Darts Open.
Littler’s presence in the sport has undeniably increased interest in darts over the last few years, but the 18-year-old isn’t just satisfied with a few titles in his bag. As the Australian Darts Masters kicks off this weekend, the Nuke is ready to right some wrongs after coming up short against Gerwyn Price at last year’s event.
Speaking ahead of the tournament kicking off, Littler said: “I’ve been here a few days now, so I’ve settled in but once Friday night comes, we’re in the venue and the crowd are pumping, it will definitely get me up for it.
“Once you are runner-up you want to come back the next year and win it. It’s a long time but now we are here and coming off the back of the Matchplay win, I am feeling very confident and up for the task.
“I got tested in Blackpool and I definitely made a good 10 days of it. Happy to come out with the win and claim the Triple Crown but now we’re Down Under, it’s a different competition and a different mindset.”
The teenager will take on New Zealand’s Haupai Puha in the first round of the tournament, with Luke Humphries, Chris Dobey, Gerwyn Price and Stephen Bunting all in action in Friday’s games.
The opening games will begin at 10am UK time (7pm local time) on Friday, August 8, before the quarter-finals, semi-finals and final take place on a blockbuster Finals Day on Saturday, August 9.
