Darts World Cup final
Humphries triumph is the happiness of prodigy Littler
Big appearance: World champion Luke Humphries hugs opponent Luke Littler after the final at Alexandra Palace
© Imago Images
Darts world champion Luke Humphries showed true greatness after his triumph and praised opponent Luke Littler effusively. The praise came from the heart – and with his victory he may have even done the prodigy a favor.
Humphries, 28 years old and currently by far the best darts professional on the planet, had defeated the 16-year-old prodigy Littler. He had turned a 2:4 deficit into a 7:4 after sets, after it had looked like he would be destroyed by Littler’s youthful force and genius. Humphries overcame the weak phase and ultimately gave the opponent no chance.
It is reminiscent of Nadal and Federer
How much energy the final had cost him became clear when he fell to his knees. But just a few moments later, Humphries straightened up, walked over to Littler, hugged him warmly, and planted a kiss on his cheek. They had given each other nothing and their mutual respect for each other was evident.
As one of the tournament’s big favorites, Humphries had to live with the fact that almost all the attention was focused on a 16-year-old. But he didn’t complain or act like an offended diva; on the contrary, like many other professionals and former players, he showed how much he admired Littler’s outstanding talent. It was somewhat reminiscent of the greatest moments between tennis players Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer. Their epochal duels always thrived on the fact that they admired each other and expressed it.
In his first answer in the winner’s interview with the TV channel Sky, Humphries spoke of Littler: “Luke is an incredible talent, you will never see a 16-year-old like that again. I hope he is in the Premier League. He is one of the best in the world. There’s no doubt about it.” And added with slight irony: “I had to get the world title now because it will definitely be there in the next few years.”
The “hype train” has slowed down
Humphries is probably right in his prediction. Littler catapulted himself to the top of the darts world by reaching the World Cup final in London and will probably not disappear there again so quickly if he continues to develop his talent. Of course, it remains to be seen whether he will actually be the great dominator of the future. Humphries and other top players will have a say.
Perhaps Humphries’ greatness lies just as much in the fact that he did Littler a favor by winning. If Littler had become world champion, the darts world would have exploded. And Littler might be crazy. Comparisons with football genius Lionel Messi were already commonplace, David Beckham wished Littler all the best and English football professionals took selfies with the prodigy. The whole of England watched with fascination the “hype train” that raced through the Ally Pally, the TV ratings skyrocketed the further Littler got into the tournament. The number of super talents burned early in sports is legendary.
The defeat slowed down the “hype train”. This can be an advantage for the development of a highly talented person who will soon be 17 years old.