'Is that a mistake?' Luke Littler asks ahead of crunch clash with Gerwyn Price
LUKE 'The Nuke' Littler has laid down the gauntlet to Gerwyn Price ahead of their mouthwatering semi-final clash in the Premier League Play-Offs at the O2 Arena in London.
Reigning champion Littler booked his place as the number one seed in the showpiece deciding night earlier this month, but it was only after Thursday's final round of the league phase in Sheffield that the teenage sensation learned who would be in his way to reach the final.
The manner in which Price surrendered third spot to Nathan Aspinall by giving up a 5-1 lead against Chris Dobey in his quarter-final means Price will play Warrington's world champion Littler after he had looked primed to face second-placed Luke Humphries.
Littler finished off a record-breaking league campaign in style as he claimed a sixth nightly victory in Sheffield to finish on 45 points – a new high in this format of the competition.
Although the 18-year-old's record is not great against Price he is certainly confident in his form going into the conclusion of 16 weeks of league action that he mostly led from top spot in the table.
'Gezzy was 5-1 up, if he won that game he would have been third,' Littler said.
'Is that a mistake? Certainly I am ready for next week. He has the record against me, but it is the O2 and I'm looking forward to it.
'I am very happy to break the records I have broken this year. But for myself, winning in Sheffield is a massive boost and a massive bonus and it gives me a lot of confidence going forward next week.'
More: I went to watch Luke Littler at the darts and this is what it was like
More: What a night as Luke Littler heads to Premier League Play-Offs in top form
If Littler does beat Price, he would meet either Humphries or Aspinall in the final as he looks to defend the title he won last year.
Price has a 7-6 win record against Littler, including six wins in a row, and he looked to have the measure of the Warringtonian over a 12-month period.
But 'The Nuke' has come out on top in their past two meetings, both in Premier League nightly rounds.
Littler won 6-3 in their quarter-final in Manchester on April 10 and by the same scoreline in their semi-final in Leeds on May 8.
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