Luke Littler faced a challenge from Rob Cross in the previous round, but encountered no such difficulties against Krzysztof Ratajski.
Luke Littler received a resounding ovation from the Alexandra Palace crowd as he surged into the PDC World Championship semi-finals, while second seed Luke Humphries was ousted by emerging talent Gian van Veen.
Littler, the tournament’s rising star who faced jeers from some spectators during his prior match on Monday, secured a dominant 5-0 victory over Poland’s Krzysztof Ratajski. He is now set to face fellow Englishman Ryan Searle in the next round.
Van Veen, a 23-year-old Dutchman, has provisionally ascended to third place in the PDC world rankings after defeating 2024 world champion Humphries, whom many considered to be Littler’s primary contender for the 2026 title in London.
Van Veen previously defeated Humphries in three major televised tournaments in 2025, including the European Championship final in October, and showcased an impressive average of 105 in his 5-1 victory.
He is scheduled to compete against two-time champion Gary Anderson in Friday’s other semi-final match.
Van Veen, the 10th seed, expressed his elation to Sky Sports, stating: “I’m so over the moon.”
“After the last game, someone asked me if that was the biggest win of my career and I said no, it was the European Championship final.”
“Now, it probably is this win tonight.”
Gian van Veen (left) now holds the distinction of being the highest-ranked Dutchman in the PDC rankings, surpassing Michael van Gerwen, following his triumph over Luke Humphries (right).
The aftermath of Littler’s fourth-round victory against Rob Cross was largely defined by the booing directed at the world number one and the 18-year-old’s subsequent response.
As Littler was introduced by MC John McDonald prior to facing Ratajski, a smattering of boos could be heard, but they were quickly overshadowed by the crowd’s enthusiastic singing of his walk-on song, followed by a prolonged rendition of “there’s only one Luke Littler” before the first dart was thrown.
The cheers amplified as Littler executed a remarkable 170 checkout to secure the first set, and he proceeded to win 12 of the following 15 legs to defeat the unseeded Ratajski.
He commented: “A few boos here and there but as soon as I got on stage the crowd were absolutely unbelievable.”
“Leading up to it, my family and friends were just like ‘whatever happens, happens’.”
“As soon as I got on stage, I clapped everyone so they knew I wanted them on my side again. They were on my side tonight and I got the job done.”
“I am growing as a player mentally. I know how to deal with it.”
“The Rob Cross game definitely tested me, but I got through it and in future games I will know how to deal with it.”
Why has Littler been booed at World Championship?
Searle had secured 14 consecutive sets without reply on his way to his first World Championship quarter-final.
The 38-year-old extended that run to 17 with some clinical finishing in the first three sets against Jonny Clayton.
A 111 finish in the deciding leg of the fifth – one of his three ton-plus checkouts in the match – helped to secure a spot in the last four.
Clayton scored better for long spells of the quarter-final but too many missed attempts on the outer ring proved costly for the Welsh fifth seed, who landed only 10 of his 40 attempts at doubles.
Searle, in contrast, hit 17 of his 30 attempts.
He lives with dominant optic atrophy, a genetic eye condition which affects his vision and for which he wears contact lenses.
He said: “I can’t see particularly well.”
“Other people who try to play darts, if they can’t see particularly well, try not to let that hold you back.”
“I try to be an inspiration to them.”
Ryan Searle’s superior finishing was key to his quarter-final win over Jonny Clayton
Anderson ended debutant Justin Hood’s exceptional run to clinch a semi-final place for the first time in four years.
The first four sets of their quarter-final were shared before Scotland’s Anderson, 55, stepped on the accelerator – winning nine of the next 10 legs to secure a convincing victory.
English left-hander Hood, 32, has earned plenty of plaudits for his play and become a crowd favourite during his first appearance at Alexandra Palace.
He earned £100,000 for reaching the quarter-finals – a portion of which he intends to use to open a Chinese restaurant – and has risen from 86th to 50th in the PDC rankings.
Ryan Searle 5-2 Jonny Clayton
Gary Anderson 5-2 Justin Hood
Luke Littler 5-0 Krzysztof Ratajski
Luke Humphries 1-5 Gian van Veen
Luke Littler v Ryan Searle
Gian van Veen v Gary Anderson
Semi-final matches are best of 11 sets and will be played on 2 January from 19:30 GMT.
World Darts Championship 2026 schedule and results
World Darts Championship – Draw, seeds, prize money
Comments can not be loaded
To load Comments you need to enable JavaScript in your browser