World Matchplay Darts: Littler’s 109.57 Average Proves He’s in a League of His Own

by Devesh Jaganath | by Devesh Jaganath

image World Matchplay Darts: Littler’s 109.57 Average Proves He’s in a League of His Own
The Empress Ballroom at Blackpool’s Winter Gardens is set to host an absolute darting war tonight, as the semi-finals of the 2026 World Matchplay get underway. All eyes are on the unplayable world number one Luke Littler, who is looking to steamroll his way into history.
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Luke Littler Chasing Back-to-Back Dream in Blackpool

Thirty-two of the best darts players from across the globe arrived at Blackpool’s Winter Gardens for the 2026 World Matchplay last weekend, and now only four remain, with a share of the record-breaking £1,000,000 prize pool hanging delicately in the balance. 

Defending champion Luke Littler enters his World Matchplay semi-final matchup against Dirk van Duijvenbode in sensational form, operating at a statistical level that has left the tournament’s remaining contenders completely shocked. 

As discussed in our Luke Littler vs Dirk van Duijvenbode prediction, “The Nuke” rattled off a jaw-dropping 109.57 tournament-high average in the quarter-finals, proving that his scoring power has shifted into an entirely different gear inside the Empress Ballroom. 

Why Littler Looks Unplayable Heading Into Semi-Finals

  • Maximums Volume: Littler’s rhythm on the treble 20 has been almost scary at times in this competition. He has already registered a tournament-high 38 maximums over his three matches, allowing him to dictate the leg pace before opponents reach a finishing double.
  • Endurance Shield: A 109-plus average is difficult enough to maintain over short-format matches, but Littler’s capability to sustain this scoring across longer leg-play distance is a massive insurance policy heading into tonight’s clash against Van Duijvenbode. 

No darts player has successfully defended this specific summer major crown in a decade, but Littler’s historic quarter-final numbers show that he is not feeling the pressure of the Blackpool history books - he is actively sprinting past them. 

Price vs. Van Veen Shaping Up Into a Tactical War

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While tonight’s spotlight will be beaming down on Littler, the first semi-final matchup brings us a classic, fascinating clash of darts philosophies between former world champion Gerwyn Price and the flying young Dutchman Gian van Veen. 

In our Gerwyn Price vs Gian van Veen prediction, our experts have coined this to be a collision between elite heavy-scoring weight and ice-cold finishing efficiency, which sets us up for what could be a strategic chess match across the Best-of-33 leg format. 

  • Price’s Scoring Power: Price remains one of the most explosive natural scorers in modern darts history, and he will try to use his heavy first-nine-dart average to bully Van Veen off the board early in legs.
  • Van Veen’s Finishing: However, Van Veen possesses the ultimate counter: absolute clinical efficiency on the outer ring. The 2026 European champion enters tonight’s session boasting an incredible 55.6% tournament checkout ratio. 

Given that the semi-final is a race to 17 legs, there is a case to be made that the advantage will slowly tilt toward finishing efficiency over scoring weight. If Van Veen can weather the early pressure from “The Iceman”, he could earn a spot in his first-ever World Matchplay final.