Luke Littler suffered a shock early exit in the 11th Players Championship on Tuesday as he fell to a 6-3 first-round defeat to Dylan Slevin.
The 18-year-old world champion’s opponent, ranked 61st in the PDC rankings, charged into a 4-1 lead before holding off a late attempt at a fightback from Littler and securing victory via the bed of double 20.
Littler’s trademark high scoring deserted him in the contest as he averaged 90.11 compared to his Irish opponent’s 92.74.
Littler was not the only high-profile star to crash out in the opening round in Leicester. Micheal van Gerwen and Gerwyn Price also exited the tournament at the first time of asking.
Van Gerwen was beaten 6-5 by compatriot Maik Kuivenhoven, while Price succumbed to a 6-4 loss in his match against fellow Welshman Rob Owen.
World No. 1 Luke Humphries exited the tournament in the second round following a 6-5 defeat to Brett Claydon.
Littler’s defeat came after he said he agreed with Humphries’ comments about struggling with the intensity of the professional darts schedule and his need for a break from the sport as a result.
Former world champion Humphries told Sky Sports on Saturday that playing has come to feel like a “chore” and that the amount of games he is required to play has left him “emotionless.” It is a sentiment that Littler said he sympathises with.
“Yeah, totally agree with him,” Littler said. “I think Gerwyn Price said the same thing this morning, or last night, I’ve seen it on Instagram.
“But yeah, it’s tough, especially when these players go over to the likes of Riesa, you’ve got to get trains, you’ve got to get direct flights, connecting flights, and then you’re back home.”
