Riyadh, Saudi Arabia — Luke Littler has made an honest admission about his performance levels after his remarkable 21-match winning streak came to a stunning end at the hands of Gerwyn Price in the Bahrain Darts Masters.
The 18-year-old world number one, who had won six major titles in 2025 including back-to-back World Championships, suffered a comprehensive 6-2 quarter-final defeat to Price on Friday, marking his first televised loss since October 30 when James Wade beat him at the European Championship.
The Shock Defeat
Price dominated proceedings from the outset, rattling off five consecutive legs to establish a commanding 5-1 advantage that left Littler with no realistic path back into the match. The Welsh thrower, world champion in 2021, produced some of his finest form to beat Littler at the Bahrain event for the second year running.
The defeat was particularly striking given Littler’s imperious form heading into the tournament. Since that loss to Wade three months earlier, the teenage sensation had swept through the Grand Slam of Darts, Players Championship Finals, and the World Championship without dropping a single televised match.
During his quarter-final clash with Price, Littler even made a rare mid-match equipment change, abandoning the prototype Target Darts he had been testing throughout the tournament—a clear sign of his struggles on the oche.
The Uncomfortable Admission
Speaking after bouncing back with a 6-1 victory over Paul Lim in the first round of the Saudi Arabia Darts Masters just days later, Littler made a revealing admission about how he felt during competition, particularly when things aren’t going his way.
“Obviously it is a very weird atmosphere, it is all new to us players,” Littler told ITV Sport after his win in Riyadh. “It is a very different environment but as long as you play well you are going to win 90 per cent of the time.”
However, it was comments Littler made during the World Championship that perhaps best captured his awareness of performance fluctuations. After his quarter-final victory over Krzysztof Ratajski at Alexandra Palace, where he won 5-0 despite averaging 101, Littler revealed his discomfort.
“Obviously a win is a win,” Littler told Sky Sports. “When I went 2-0 up, I asked the guys in the back what I am averaging, they said ‘101’ and I was just like what are you talking about? Maybe because I have had two days off but I didn’t feel comfortable.”
The admission that he “didn’t feel comfortable” despite producing a 101 average—a figure most players would kill for—demonstrates both Littler’s extraordinarily high standards and his self-awareness about when his game isn’t firing on all cylinders.
Reality Check in the Middle East
The back-to-back Middle Eastern events have provided something of a reality check for the teenage prodigy. While he bounced back from the Bahrain disappointment with a routine victory over the 71-year-old Lim in Saudi Arabia, his performance level was noticeably below the stratospheric heights that saw him demolish Gian van Veen 7-1 in the World Championship final.
Against Lim, Littler averaged just 89.33 without registering a single 180—statistics that would have been unthinkable during his peak form over the past three months. While still comfortably sufficient to dispatch the veteran Singaporean, the numbers suggest Littler is still recalibrating after the shock of losing to Price.
“I definitely felt good up there and I can’t wait to be back tomorrow,” Littler said after beating Lim. “It would mean everything to win this title. There can only be one winner and hopefully I can win it tomorrow.”
The Standards of Greatness
What makes Littler’s admission particularly notable is the standard he holds himself to. For most players on tour, averaging 101 while cruising to a 5-0 victory would represent a career-best performance. For Littler, it’s cause for concern—an indication that something isn’t quite right.
This mindset mirrors that of other sporting greats who have dominated their fields. Michael van Gerwen during his peak years from 2014-2017 would express frustration with 105 averages. Phil Taylor would berate himself for “only” averaging 100. Roger Federer would critique matches he won in straight sets.
It’s the mentality of champions—the refusal to accept anything less than their absolute best, even when that “sub-par” performance would be world-class for anyone else.
Vulnerability Exposed
The Bahrain defeat exposed a rare vulnerability in Littler’s armor. Price’s aggressive, front-foot approach disrupted the teenager’s rhythm and prevented him from settling into the devastating scoring patterns that have become his trademark.
More concerning for Littler—though perhaps encouraging for his rivals—was his mid-match equipment change, abandoning his prototype darts in search of salvation that never arrived. Elite players rarely make such drastic changes unless genuinely desperate, suggesting Price had gotten into Littler’s head.
“Not my night but great game @gerwynpriceiceman180,” Littler posted graciously on social media after the defeat. “Heading home for a few days then looking forward to the dutch darts masters.”
The mature response demonstrated Littler’s emotional intelligence and professionalism, but couldn’t disguise the fact that for the first time in months, he’d been genuinely outplayed on the biggest stage.
The Price Factor
Gerwyn Price now holds a peculiar psychological advantage over Littler, having beaten him in Bahrain two years running. While Littler leads their overall head-to-head record, Price has demonstrated an ability to raise his game and unsettle the teenager in Middle Eastern conditions.
“Gutted to lose there,” Price wrote sarcastically on Instagram after his semi-final defeat to Michael van Gerwen. “Didn’t feel good all night, gonna stop and watch the Luke-Luke final though.”
The tongue-in-cheek post, joking about a final between Littler and Luke Humphries (who was also knocked out in the quarters), showed Price’s confidence in having broken Littler’s aura of invincibility, even if only temporarily.
Saudi Arabia: The Bounce-Back Test
The Saudi Arabia Darts Masters presented Littler with an immediate opportunity to prove the Bahrain loss was merely a blip. His quarter-final rematch against Gian van Veen—a repeat of the World Championship final just two weeks earlier—would provide the perfect measuring stick.
Van Veen, who has emerged as a genuine contender after reaching back-to-back major finals, admitted he was “looking forward” to facing Littler again and hoping for “revenge” after the 7-1 Alexandra Palace thrashing.
The unique Saudi Arabian atmosphere, with its near-silence and lack of the traditional raucous darts crowd, presents its own challenges. Littler acknowledged the adjustment required, calling it “a very weird atmosphere.”
Maintaining Perspective
Despite the admission of discomfort and the shock Bahrain loss, perspective is crucial. Littler’s 21-match winning streak included two major titles and a World Championship crown. His worst televised defeats in recent months have come by 6-2 and 10-7 scorelines—hardly catastrophic collapses.
Moreover, his self-awareness about performance levels suggests a maturity beyond his 18 years. Many players would have insisted they felt great despite averaging 101; Littler’s honesty about feeling uncomfortable demonstrates an elite competitor’s ability to accurately assess their own form.
“When I went 2-0 up, I asked the guys in the back what I am averaging, they said ‘101’ and I was just like what are you talking about?” That incredulous response—confusion at producing such a “low” average—encapsulates both the absurdly high standards Littler has set and the mindset that got him there.
The Road Ahead
The remainder of the 2026 season will test whether Littler can maintain the extraordinary levels that saw him dominate the back end of 2025. The Premier League, starting February 5 in Newcastle, will provide weekly battles against the world’s elite across 16 weeks of league action.
Van Gerwen’s resurgence—winning the Bahrain title—demonstrates that challengers are circling. Humphries remains a threat despite his own Bahrain exit. Van Veen has announced himself as a major player. Nathan Aspinall’s quarter-final victory over Humphries showed the depth of quality waiting to capitalize on any Littler slip.
The teenager’s honest assessment of his comfort levels and performance fluctuations suggests he understands the challenge ahead. Maintaining motivation after achieving so much so young is difficult; staying hungry after back-to-back World Championships even more so.
The Champion’s Mindset
What ultimately makes Littler’s admission significant isn’t that he had an off night—every player does. It’s that he recognized it, acknowledged it, and immediately refocused on the next challenge. There’s no deflection, no excuses, just an honest appraisal and determination to do better.
“As long as you play well you are going to win 90 per cent of the time,” Littler noted after his Saudi Arabia opener. That clinical understanding of the relationship between performance and results, free from emotion or excuses, marks him as special.
Yes, his winning streak has ended. Yes, he’s admitted to feeling uncomfortable even while producing world-class statistics. But champions don’t measure themselves by unbeaten runs—they measure themselves by their response to defeat.
Littler’s gracious acceptance of the Bahrain loss, coupled with his immediate return to winning ways in Saudi Arabia, suggests the “drop-off” he experienced was temporary. The scary thing for his rivals? Even when he’s uncomfortable and “not feeling it,” Luke Littler still averages 101.
That’s not a drop-off. That’s a recalibration. And when he finds his absolute peak form again—as he inevitably will—the rest of the darting world better watch out.
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