Luke Littler's brutal kebab dig at manager as darts star, 16, celebrates again

21 December 2023 , 21:45

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Luke Littler, 16, is into the last-32 of the World Darts Championship (Image: Shaun Brooks/Action Plus/REX/Shutterstock)

Teenage darts sensation Luke 'The Nuke' Littler plans to celebrate his latest win with another kebab - as long as his manager doesn't choose it.

The 16-year-old roared into the third round of the World Darts Championship at Alexandra Palace on Thursday with a 3-1 win over 20th seed Andrew Gilding, the former UK Open champion who is more than three times Littler's age at 53.

Littler, from Warrington, had become the youngest player to win a match at Alexandra Palace when he beat Christian Kist 3-0 on Wednesday, and he'll now face Canada's Matt Campbell in the last-32 after Christmas as he sees his odds to win the tournament drop markedly.

Too young to gamble and drink, the teen is finding himself becoming the centre of attention at the palace, and a picture of him celebrating his first round win with a kebab went viral after he posted it on Instagram.

Littler said: “As soon as I opened my bag and phone, there were at least 500 notifications on different social media. I didn't have time to answer all of them. On Instagram, I have gone from 4,000 followers to 11,000 overnight. I have had footballers and all sorts following me. it’s incredible so many people want to know me.”

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Littler will now play in the third round after Christmas (Shaun Brooks/Action Plus/REX/Shutterstock)

When asked if he would be celebrating his latest win with another kebab, Littler said: “My manager got that kebab but I didn’t really like it. It’s trending worldwide. This time I'll get my own... I think it will be another kebab.”

The teenager had to dig deep to see off the experienced 'Goldfinger' Gilding, who was booed by small sections of the crowd who sang "he's got school in the morning" in support of the youngster.

Littler has become the story of this year's tournament (Shaun Brooks/Action Plus/REX/Shutterstock)

Reflecting on his tough win, Littler said: “When I went 2-0 up, I gave it a bit and it stole all my energy and when Andrew pulled a set back, I just wanted to win it because I didn't want it to go 2-2 on this stage. I don't know how I got over the line, but I did it.”

Record 16-time world champion Phil 'The Power' Taylor has tipped Littler to go all the way in the tournament, saying: "I honestly believe he thinks that he can go and win the tournament. And I totally agree with him."

Mark Jones