Luke Littler makes abrupt retirement confession and vows to walk away from darts on extraordinary condition

Luke Littler has joked that he would retire from professional darts if he managed to win 16 consecutive World Championship titles, matching the legendary achievements of Phil Taylor.

The world No. 1 continued his sensational form at the Betfred World Matchplay with an outstanding 11-8 victory over Nathan Aspinall, averaging a remarkable 113.68—the second-highest average ever recorded at the Winter Gardens.

The 19-year-old also produced a spectacular nine-dart finish in the opening leg and came agonisingly close to hitting another perfect leg moments later. His latest masterpiece made him only the second player, after Phil Taylor, to record two nine-darters at the World Matchplay, and the first to achieve the feat in consecutive years.

Littler is enjoying a remarkable season and remains on course to complete a clean sweep of the PDC’s televised major titles after already winning the World Championship, World Masters, UK Open, Premier League and World Cup of Darts.

Despite his extraordinary success, Littler believes he still has a long way to go before entering the greatest-of-all-time conversation.

Speaking ahead of his quarter-final clash with Josh Rock, Littler said comparisons with Taylor have followed him since he burst onto the professional scene.

“I’ve always said that unless I win 16 World Championships and everything else that Phil Taylor achieved, I can’t call myself the greatest,” he said.

The teenager then laughed about what would happen if he actually reached that incredible milestone.

“If I win 16 World Championships in a row, I’m gone,” Littler joked. “If I don’t win 16 in a row, I’ll probably stick around for another 10 years.”

Littler admitted he is delighted with how quickly his career has progressed, having already collected several of the sport’s biggest trophies.

“My goal when I first came onto the tour was simply to win every major at least once,” he explained. “Once you’ve done that, you try to win them again, then again, and just keep building.”

Away from his success on television, Littler has attracted attention for skipping every Players Championship event this season. The teenage star has withdrawn from all 24 tournaments so far, leaving him outside the qualification places for the Players Championship Finals in Minehead.

However, Littler accepts that his schedule will always divide opinion.

“People will criticise me either way,” he said. “I’ll get questioned for not playing, and if I don’t qualify, people will talk about that too.”

Looking ahead, Littler suggested he is unlikely to change his plans even after his World Matchplay campaign.

“If I end up lifting the trophy, who knows what I’ll do?” he said. “I think there are only four Players Championship events left in Leicester, and I’m not planning on going to Den Bosch for the others.”