Luke Littler produces perfect leg in Leicester before losing to Gian van Veen

Luke Littler threw his first nine-darter of the year at the Players Championship 5 in Leicester, but fell in the semi-finals as Joe Cullen emerged victorious.

Littler summoned all of his quality as he landed the nine in the sixth leg of his second-round win over Adam Hunt, one of three consecutive 6-5 victories for the world champion.

‘The Nuke’ looked to have peaked when he slipped into a 4-0 deficit against Dirk van Duijvenbode but he roared back to form as he forced a decider and finished with 126 on the bullseye.

He maintained a remarkable 122.96 average as he destroyed Damon Heta to reach the final four but was finally beaten by Gian van Veen in a tense 7-6 finish – ending his winning streak at 19 games.

Cullen was good value for his run to the final, getting the better of world number one Luke Humphries 6-4 along the way.

He struggled to keep pace with Van Veen in the early running, going 7-4 down, but showed nerves of steel as he survived six match darts on his way to an 8-7 triumph.

“I think this is the best win of my career, because of the adversity I have had to endure over the last year,” said Cullen.

“When you’re slipping down the rankings and you’re doubting yourself, there is nothing worse in darts. I think I’m down to number 22 in the world. There’s not 21 players that are better than me in the world, but the rankings don’t lie.”