Humphries beats Aspinall in US Darts Masters final
World number one Luke Humphries got the better of fellow Englishman Nathan Aspinall to claim a superb victory in the final of the US Darts Masters.Humphries, 30, followed up his World Masters and Premier League titles with an 8-6 win in the World Series of Darts event at New York's Madison Square Garden.Aspinall defeated world champion Luke Littler 6-4 in the quarter-finals earlier on Saturday."This is the most iconic venue that we play in and it's really special to win this event," said Humphries."It's one of the top venues in the world and it's one I've always dreamed of winning. When I finally won, it was an amazing relief."
Aspinall, who won the 2019 tournament when it was held in Las Vegas, made a slow start in the final and was 3-0 down before levelling it at 5-5 thanks to a 90 finish on bullseye.A 142 checkout from Humphries edged him ahead once more but Aspinall missed two darts to make it 7-7, with Humphries seizing the opportunity and sealing the win with double eight.Humphries secured his place in the final with a 6-2 victory over American Danny Lauby and a 7-2 semi-final success over Welshman Gerwyn Price, while Aspinall followed up his win over England's Littler by overcoming Australian Damon Heta 7-3 in the last four.The World Series of Darts continues on 4-5 July with the Poland Darts Masters in Gliwice.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Reuters
an hour ago
- Reuters
Bullpen ready to contribute as Cubs chase series win vs. Astros
June 29 - While the Cubs' seven-run fourth inning laid the foundation for an easy 12-3 road victory over the host Houston Astros on Saturday, how Chicago was able to set up its bullpen for the series rubber match on Sunday was tied to the opener. Veteran right-hander Chris Flexen worked four shutout innings of relief after the Cubs fell into a seven-run deficit on Friday and his performance enabled Chicago to preserve their bullpen for the final two games of the series. The blowout victory on Saturday, combined with what Flexen produced in the opener, leaves the Cubs with their high-leverage relievers available for the finale. "In your bullpen, the guys are connected to each other," Cubs manager Craig Counsell said. "Chris made somebody else more effective (Saturday and Sunday), and I think that's a big deal. "There's no statistic for that, there's no metric, there's no analytics for that. He made our team better (Saturday), he made a particular player better, and that's in addition to throwing four scoreless innings." Right-hander Jameson Taillon (7-5, 4.47 ERA) is scheduled to start the series finale for the Cubs on Sunday. Taillon has dropped back-to-back starts after winning five consecutive outings through mid-June, recording a 14.63 ERA and .379 opponent batting average in those outings. He allowed a season-high eight runs on eight hits and two walks with three strikeouts over a season-low-tying four innings in an 8-7 road loss to the St. Louis Cardinals on Tuesday. Taillon is 1-1 with a 4.50 ERA in five career starts against his hometown Astros. In his last appearance against Houston, he allowed two runs (one earned) on seven hits and two walks with four strikeouts over 5 2/3 innings in a 4-3 road win on April 24, 2024. Left-hander Framber Valdez (8-4, 2.88) has the starting assignment for the Astros in the rubber match. Despite tossing seven scoreless innings against the Philadelphia Phillies on Tuesday, Valdez had his streak of six consecutive starts with a winning decision snapped when he did not factor into the decision of a 1-0 home victory. However, Valdez remains unbeaten over his last nine starts (7-0 with a 1.89 ERA) with 65 strikeouts over 62 innings. The Astros are 9-0 in those games. Valdez has faced the Cubs once previously. He allowed four runs on seven hits and two walks with eight strikeouts in four innings but did not factor into the decision of a 6-4 win on May 15, 2023. Given their spate of injuries to starting pitchers, the Astros sorely need veteran right-hander Lance McCullers Jr. to serve as a reliable member of the rotation for the second half of the season. McCullers returned from a 15-day stint on the injured list and allowed eight runs on seven hits and four walks while recording one strikeout and only 10 outs. He threw 79 pitches. It marked the eighth start of the season for McCullers, who missed the previous two seasons with injuries. With right-hander Hunter Brown and Valdez the only experienced options currently in the rotation, the Astros are hopeful that McCullers can stay healthy and return to past form. "Just the fact that we got him back out there and got him close to 80 pitches (is important)," Astros manager Joe Espada said of McCullers. "It's just one that we've got to put behind him and get ready for the next start." --Field Level Media
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE Revealed: Expert lip-reader exposes Chelsea star Levi Colwill's shocking x-rated rant at referee as frustrations over TWO-HOUR rain delay and controversial Benfica penalty boil over
A lip reader has revealed what was said by Levi Colwill during the Chelsea star's furious rant towards a referee. The Blues defender was livid after Benfica were awarded a 93rd-minute penalty during their Club World Cup last-16 clash on Saturday. Angel Di Maria converted the spot kick to make it 1-1 and send the game to extra time. But the Portuguese side could not continue their momentum into the final half hour, and Chelsea responded by scoring three goals to win the game 4-1 and tee up a quarter-final clash with Brazilian club Palmeiras. The penalty came after a storm warning triggered a lightning protocol involving a full evacuation and a 30‑minute suspension, which reset with every new strike - delaying the match for 1 hour and 53 minutes. The lightning‑ridden chaos stretched the game to nearly five hours in total, undoubtedly fuelling the mounting frustrations at the Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina. Chelsea conceded a penalty after VAR flagged Malo Gusto for a handball. By this point, Colwill had reached his breaking point. I fell in love with Levi Colwill from this moment more and more. Proper captain material. At some point I was thinking, 'Leave the ref,' but man refused and said his piece. — SHAYEE 𒀭 (@tier_first) June 29, 2025 Levi Colwill let out a furious rant at the referee after Chelsea conceded a penalty vs Benfica 'F***ing s***, you're f***ing s***, you're s*** referee… disgrace,' the 22-year-old told official Slavko Vincic, while pointing a finger in his face. Despite Chelsea going on to win the game, Colwill was not the only one who was in angered spirits, with manager Enzo Maresca also airing out his frustrations after the game. 'For me personally, it's not football,' the Italian tactician said. 'It's already seven, eight, nine games that they suspended. 'I think it's a joke, to be honest. It's not football. It's not for us. You cannot be inside. If you suspend seven or eight games that means that probably is not the right place to do this competition.' This was the sixth weather‑related stoppage at venues across the US during the Club World Cup. Other games suspended due to storms have been Benfica versus Auckland City in Orlando, Ulsan versus Mamelodi Sundowns in Orlando, Red Bull Salzburg versus Pachuca in Cincinnati, Boca Juniors versus Auckland City in Nashville, and Palmeiras versus Al Ahly in New Jersey.
Daily Mail
2 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Soon-to-be NBA star Ace Bailey makes stunning first move in Utah amid reports he was 'unhappy' to join Jazz
Ace Bailey had the perfect answer to his critics on Saturday as he wasted little time getting in his first workout with the Jazz. There had been speculation that Bailey could holdout from Utah, as he reportedly preferred to be drafted elsewhere and admitted he had 'no idea' the Jazz were interested in selecting him at No. 5 in Wednesday's NBA Draft. The noise around Bailey and Utah then got a little louder on Friday when ESPN's Brian Windhorst revealed on SportsCenter that Bailey had had 'minimal contact' with the team and had yet to report to the franchise. After landing in Salt Lake City on Saturday, however, Bailey quickly won over Jazz fans as the team posted a video of him working out hours later. In fact, Bailey's suitcase was seen behind the basket as he got some shots up. 'Didn't even unpack his bags…yea he gonna be one of them ones,' one fan said on X. he wasn't kidding when he said he was 'ready to get to work' #TakeNote | @AiriousB — Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) June 29, 2025 'BRO. This is the best thing I've ever seen. I honestly don't think I've ever been happier as a Jazz fan,' another beamed. 'HIS AIRNESS HAS ARRIVED!!!,' a third added. And a fourth said: 'I cannot wait to see this kid play!!' Bailey's pre-draft process became a huge talking point, as he refused to work out for any teams and tried to land himself on the Wizards, Pelicans or Nets according to ESPN's Jonathan Givony. Prior to the draft, Givony also reported that Bailey's agent, Omar Cooper, had told at least one team in the top five that Bailey would not report if they decided to draft him. Ahead of Bailey's arrival, a Jazz representative told ESPN on Friday that they've had 'good communication' with Bailey and his representatives ahead of summer league training camp starting on Monday. 'We feel good about everything. Ace and his family are coming to Utah tomorrow,' the Jazz representative told ESPN. 'We'll have a press conference Sunday, and a practice Monday. 'This has always been the plan, including for our other rookies, Walter Clayton and John Tonje - to let them go home and collect their belongings, and then fly right to summer league from Salt Lake City.' The president of GSE Worldwide (who are representing Bailey in conjunction with Cooper), Andrew Witlieb, also told FOS Today that the ex-Rutgers star was 'thrilled' to be in Utah. Bailey is set to make his Jazz summer league debut on July 11 against the Hornets.
