The world champion, Luke Littler, beat Nathan Aspinall 6-3 to win night five of the Premier League in Brighton, where there were two nine-dart finishes.
Littler, who added the UK Open title to his growing collection last weekend, had too much for Aspinall, closing out his second nightly win to keep the pressure on Luke Humphries at the top of the table. Earlier Humphries, the world No 1, had hit a nine-darter in his quarter-final defeat by Rob Cross, who then also produced a perfect leg as he was later edged out 6-5 by Aspinall.
Littler, who saw off Michael van Gerwen 6-2 in the semi-finals, had taken a 3-1 lead in the final, but Aspinall fought back with a break of his own to level at 3-3. The seventh leg proved the turning point when Littler grabbed another crucial break and then did so again to secure another overall nightly win.
Humphries, who also has two nightly wins, now holds only a two-point lead over the defending Premier League champion at the top of the table on 15. Aspinall and Van Gerwen are both back on eight points each.
“Lukewas clear, but with him losing I was just concentrating on my own game,” Littler said of Humphries. “Coming off the back of the UK Open I was playing really well and I think I played very well tonight which is why I picked up another trophy.
“My main goal is obviously the top four and make it to the O2, which is where the proper title defence takes place. My eyes are now on the Euro Tour. I’ve always been confident in my own ability, but the way my darts are going in at the minute, they’re probably the best I’ve ever played on a consistent basis.”
In the semi-finals, Aspinall had battled past Cross in a last-leg decider, with “Voltage” having taken out 141 after hitting treble 19, treble 16 and double 18 in the sixth leg to lead 4-2.
In the quarter-finals, Humphries had also landed a nine-dart finish, but went on to lose 6-4 to Cross. Humphries had started strongly and hit a perfect second leg to move 2-0 ahead, but Cross refused to be swept aside, fighting back to level. Although Humphries then moved ahead 4-2, Cross fired off four straight legs to seal an impressive victory, finishing with a match average of 111 and seven 180s.
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In the night’s opening match, Van Gerwen, a seven-time Premier League champion, built on a fast start to close out a 6-3 win over Gerwyn Price, who hit just three of his 17 attempts at a double.
Littler also had some trouble on his checkouts against Chris Dobey, falling 2-0 down before coming back to level. There was nothing between them as the match went to a deciding leg, which Littler took with a 110 finish on tops. Meanwhile, Stephen Bunting’s push to get his first points on the board continued after a 6-2 defeat by Aspinall.
