EXCLUSIVE: Luke Littler has been warned by an ‘underdog’ who says he can ‘beat anyone’ and could cause a major upset at the PDC World Darts Championship
Luke Littler has been warned an ‘hungry’ underdog who can ‘beat anyone’ can stop him seizing the darts’ world crown.
The teen whirlwind faces a potential battle against ultra confident Ritchie ‘Madhouse’ Edhouse who shocked the sport in October after claiming the European title. Ritchie, 41, was a 250/1 outsider but still toppled two ex world champions to bag the trophy – and now says 17-year-old Luke does not scare him.
The Enfield based star backs himself, exclusively telling the Daily Star, what he’ll do if he plays ‘The Nuke’. He said: “I’ll play him like I’ll play anyone. I know I can beat them all. I can (win) the European, I can beat anyone”.
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Littler is the 11/5 favourite to bag his first Paddy Power PDC World Darts Championship – starting on Sunday – after becoming a global star last year when he stormed to the final before falling short. And is the reigning Premier League Darts, Grand Slam and World Series Final Champion.
But that has not stopped Ritchie warning the teen his world title dream could be over sooner than he hopes with the two players on track to meet at the third round stage.
Ritchie, speaking as he promoted Prostate Cancer UK, said: “I’m confident in my own game. Confidence breeds confidence and I’m now hungry for more.”
That’s brazen talk for a fella whose best at the World Championships is reaching the last 64 on two occasions and exiting in the last 96 round in 2024.
Ritchie’s run to grab the European Title put him against 28 of the world’s top 32 rated players, however in a shocking turn of events two outsiders ended up in the final as Edhouse beat two former world champions, Gary Anderson and Michael Smith.
Edhouse’s recent success has the world of darts wondering, just how far could this underdog go and could he add another major title to his belt after his success in Europe?
The darts PDC World Championships starts on Sunday, December 15 until January 3. To find out more about Ritchie Edhouse’s work with Prostate Cancer UK click HERE.
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