Teenager Luke Littler will hope his history-making World Championship journey ends in glory when he plays Luke Humphries in the final.

It has been a whirlwind two weeks for the 16-year-old debutant, who is the youngest ever player to reach the climax of the premier darts tournament.

Here, the PA news agency looks at how Littler has stormed through the tournament.

First round – Beat Christian Kist 3-0

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Having earned his place by winning the World Youth Championship in November, Littler’s record-breaking started in his first-round match. The teenage debutant destroyed Christian Kist in straight sets, averaging a mammoth 106.12, which is the highest ever by a player on debut at the World Championship.

Second round – beat Andrew Gilding 3-1

The UK Open champion ought to have provided a sterner test but he was also brushed aside to ensure ‘The Nuke’ returned to the Alexandra Palace after Christmas. His numbers were not as good as his opening-round win, but he became the youngest player to ever reach the third round of the World Championship with another assured display.

Third round – beat Matt Campbell 4-1

The hype was growing around Littler as he resumed his campaign two days after Christmas and the gifts kept on coming as he sent the Canadian packing. It was a mammoth 164 checkout and an impressive doubles percentage that saw him over the line to keep the dream – and the media hype – alive.

Last 16 – beat Raymond van Barneveld 4-1

Littler used to imitate Van Barneveld as a three-year-old so to get the chance to play him on the Alexandra Palace stage was a dream come true. And it was the 16-year-old that played like a five-time world champion as the apprentice demolished the master. He averaged a superb 105.01 and threw nine 180s to prove his credentials as a genuine contender.

Quarter-final – beat Brendan Dolan 5-1

The Littler juggernaut showed no signs of stopping as he demolished Dolan with a superb display. Dolan had ousted former world champions Gerwyn Price and Gary Anderson on the way to the last eight but he could not cope with Littler’s heavy scoring and mature matchplay as he again averaged over 100.

Semi-final – beat Rob Cross 6-2

The teenager saved his best for the biggest occasion as he put in a masterful performance to beat 2018 champion Cross – the last man to win on debut. He lost the first set to trail for the first time in the tournament but soon showed he is the player for the big occasion, winning with a 106.05 average and 16 180s to keep the dream alive.

Sixteen-year-old Luke Littler stormed into the World Championship final with a 6-2 win over former champion Rob Cross.

Here, the PA news agency puts the youngster’s achievements in context.

Young gun

The famously raucous Ally Pally crowd chanted “you’ve got school in the morning” during Littler’s opening win over Christian Kist and he became the youngest player to reach even the last 16 of the event with his third-round win over Matt Campbell.

His youth was highlighted most of all in beating Raymond van Barneveld, the man he describes as “one of my idols” and fully 40 years Littler’s senior, to reach the quarter-finals.

The Dutchman won the 2007 World Championship 20 days before Littler was born and has been playing competitively for more than twice Littler’s lifetime, since 1984 when he himself was just 17.

Michael van Gerwen is the youngest PDC world champion, winning in 2014 at the age of 24 – and indeed the youngest major winner, aged 23 at the 2012 World Grand Prix – so time is on Littler’s side to rewrite the record books regardless of Wednesday’s outcome.

Jelle Klaasen won a BDO world title aged 21, while Eric Bristow won his first at 22 and was 27 when he inspired Sid Waddell’s famous commentary line comparing him to Alexander the Great.

Littler would be the first player to win the title on his debut since Cross himself in 2018. Dennis Priestley, in the inaugural event, and Van Barneveld are the only other players to achieve the feat but were both BDO world champions before switching allegiance.

A six-figure payday is already assured for the teenager, with £500,000 awaiting the champion and £200,000 for runner-up.

Tournament performance

Regardless of his age, Littler has produced a series of hugely impressive displays at Alexandra Palace.

He has compiled a three-dart average of 101.82 on his run through the tournament, topping 100 against Kist – with a tournament-high 106.12 – Van Barneveld, Brendan Dolan and with 106.05 against Cross.

His 44.68 per cent record on checkouts has helped ensure he has never been in a close match, winning 3-0, 3-1, 4-1, 4-1, 5-1 and then 6-2.

A 180 in the decisive leg of the seventh set against Cross was his 16th of an outstanding match and his 50th of the tournament.

He has hit 293 centuries in all, including 70 scores of 140 and, with his accuracy when switching to treble-19, 134 on a remarkable 46 occasions.

Eighth seed Cross was the highest-ranked scalp on a run which has also seen Littler take out three players ranked in the 20s in Gilding, Dolan and Van Barneveld. Littler’s own ranking could climb as high as ninth in the world if he wins the final.

Teenage sensation Luke Littler’s incredible rise continues after he became the youngest player to reach the fourth round of the World Championship.

The 16-year-old has taken the Alexandra Palace tournament by storm and wowed an adoring crowd with a sensational performance to destroy Matt Campbell 4-1.

Littler, who won the World Youth Championship in November, will pocket a guaranteed £35,000 but will have his sights on lifting the Sid Waddell Trophy in what would be one of the greatest ever sporting stories.

It is going to take something special to stop him as he is producing form which defies his tender age.

He averaged 97.19, threw eight 180s and produced three 100-plus checkouts, including a majestic 164 in the fifth set.

A dream last-16 tie with his hero Raymond van Barneveld could be waiting for him on Saturday, if the Dutchman can beat Jim Williams on Friday night.

After disposing of Christian Kist and UK Open champion Andrew Gilding, the teenager returned home for Christmas where he sacrificed time on his Xbox after dinner for a practice session on the board.

And that paid dividends as he made an electric start, winning the first six legs to roar into a 2-0 lead.

Campbell, who returned home to Canada over the festive period before arriving back in the UK on Boxing Day, looked to have a foothold in the third set as he took the first two legs, but a relentless Littler reeled off the next three to move 3-0 up.

He had a match dart to seal a 4-0 whitewash but suffered a rare bout of inaccuracy, which allowed Campbell to get on the board.

Littler hit back in the fifth set, though, hitting two 100-plus checkouts on his way to sealing a famous win.

Speaking on stage after the match, Littler said: “It’s unbelievable. I only wanted to win one game and I have won three and I have battled through it. I am so happy.

“I just let my darts do the talking, everyone on social media saying, ‘He’s this age’, but I let my darts do the talking.

“As soon as I won that first game I have just settled.”

Teenage sensation Luke Littler will ditch his Xbox for the practice board on Christmas Day as he bids to keep his World Championship dream alive.

The 16-year-old debutant has taken the tournament by storm and booked his spot in the third round with an impressive win over UK Open champion Andrew Gilding on Thursday night.

He will now head home to Runcorn for the festive period, but the usual fun and games after Christmas dinner will be replaced by a tough practice session.

“It’s been a crazy few days,” Littler, who last month won the World Youth Championship, told the PA news agency.

“Christmas is going to be very different. We’ll do the same thing a family always does and then when I finish my dinner I will get on the board for a good few hours.

“I would normally wait for the dinner to be cooked, go on the Xbox, call my mates, speak to them, but I’ll be on the board.”

The precocious player does not turn 17 until next month, but people are already talking about him as a possible champion.

He produced a record-breaking performance in his first-round win over Christian Kist, posting the highest three-dart average of any World Championship debutant with a stunning 106.

A winnable last-32 tie against Canadian Matt Campbell is next when the tournament resumes after Christmas and Littler is daring to dream, even if he thinks he has already over-achieved.

Asked whether he believes he can go all the way at Alexandra Palace, he said: “If my A-game is there I don’t see why not, but I have just got to beat what is in front of me.

“Loads of people are expecting me to win it, I am just happy to have won my first game. When I got back to the hotel after beating Christian Kist I said ‘let’s try and come back after Christmas’ and that’s what I have done, so I have overachieved this year.

“It is just unbelievable, I can’t wait to come back after Christmas. Being on stage has been amazing and I’ve loved the support, it’s unbelievable.”

Littler is also dreaming of a meeting with either Raymond van Barneveld or Michael van Gerwen in the latter stages of the tournament.

“I always looked up to Phil Taylor, Barney and Michael van Gerwen. It would be unbelievable to play one of those two,” he added.

“It would be a weird one, who the crowd would support, me or Barney or me or Van Gerwen, but I have just got to beat what is in front of me and hopefully I can meet one of those in the later stages.”

Teenager Luke Littler continued his dream PDC World Championship debut by defeating Andrew Gilding to reach the third round.

The 16-year-old was the toast of Alexandra Palace after beating Christian Kist on Wednesday and he was at it again 24 hours later with a 3-1 success against 20th seed Gilding.

The UK Open champion is 37 years older than Littler but it was the youngster showing the greater composure in the first two sets, with Gilding twice missing a pair of darts at double in the second.

Littler suffered a blip in the third but Gilding was unable to take his opportunities and the teenager clinched a spot in the last 32 against Matt Campbell.

Speaking to Sky Sports, Littler said: “When I went 2-0 up, I lost all my energy. When Andrew got the set back I was just thinking, ‘Just try and win it’, because I don’t want to go 2-2 on this stage. I was nervous as it is. I don’t know how I got over the line but I’ve done it.”

Scott Williams came agonisingly close to a nine-dart finish in a comprehensive 3-0 upset of seventh seed Danny Noppert while German Gabriel Clemens, a semi-finalist last year, defeated Hong Kong’s Man Lok Leung 3-1.

The night finished with Australian 10th seed Damon Heta battling to a 3-1 victory over an out-of-sorts Martin Lukeman.

Earlier, former champion Rob Cross secured his spot in the third round with an unconvincing 3-0 win over Thibault Tricole.

Cross had reached the final of the Grand Slam of Darts last month but was not at his best against an opponent gripped by nerves.

Tricole missed 13 attempts at double during an error-strewn first set and, while he improved to go two legs up in the next set, Cross was able to fight back to show his class with an excellent 114 checkout to move 2-0 up.

It broke the resistance of French thrower and the eighth seed and 2018 winner Cross was able to breeze through the third set to ensure he will return after Christmas.

Zong Ziao Chen started day seven proceedings with a 180 from his first three darts and produced a superb 128 bullseye checkout in the next leg, but Mickey Mansell proved too strong and booked his place in round two.

Mansell won 3-0 and averaged 89.94 to set up a second-round meeting with fellow Northern Irishman Brendan Dolan on Friday.

In the final round one clash of the Championships, debutant Berry van Peer caused an upset to knock out Englishman Luke Woodhouse 3-2.

Woodhouse landed six maximums but lost out to Dutchman Van Peer in a high-quality encounter.

Van Peer was making his first appearance at Alexandra Palace after coming back from struggles with dartitis and was able to regroup impressively after he missed two match darts at 2-1 up before he landed double 10 in the decider to become the last player into round two.

Number 32 seed Madars Razma set up a third-round clash with defending champion Michael Smith after a 3-1 win over Mike de Decker.

Teenager Luke Littler continued his dream PDC World Championship debut by defeating Andrew Gilding to reach the third round.

The 16-year-old was the toast of Alexandra Palace after beating Christian Kist on Wednesday and he was at it again 24 hours later with a 3-1 success against 20th seed Gilding.

The UK Open champion is 37 years older than Littler but it was the youngster showing the greater composure in the first two sets, with Gilding twice missing a pair of darts at double in the second.

Littler suffered a blip in the third but Gilding was unable to take his opportunities and the teenager clinched a spot in the last 32 against Matt Campbell.

Speaking to Sky Sports, Littler said: “When I went 2-0 up, I lost all my energy. When Andrew got the set back I was just thinking, ‘Just try and win it’, because I don’t want to go 2-2 on this stage. I was nervous as it is. I don’t know how I got over the line but I’ve done it.”

Scott Williams came agonisingly close to a nine-dart finish in a comprehensive 3-0 upset of seventh seed Danny Noppert while German Gabriel Clemens, a semi-finalist last year, defeated Hong Kong’s Man Lok Leung 3-1.

The night finished with Australian 10th seed Damon Heta battling to a 3-1 victory over an out-of-sorts Martin Lukeman.

Earlier, former champion Rob Cross secured his spot in the third round with an unconvincing 3-0 win over Thibault Tricole.

Cross had reached the final of the Grand Slam of Darts last month but was not at his best against an opponent gripped by nerves.

Tricole missed 13 attempts at double during an error-strewn first set and, while he improved to go two legs up in the next set, Cross was able to fight back to show his class with an excellent 114 checkout to move 2-0 up.

It broke the resistance of French thrower and the eighth seed and 2018 winner Cross was able to breeze through the third set to ensure he will return after Christmas.

Zong Ziao Chen started day seven proceedings with a 180 from his first three darts and produced a superb 128 bullseye checkout in the next leg, but Mickey Mansell proved too strong and booked his place in round two.

Mansell won 3-0 and averaged 89.94 to set up a second-round meeting with fellow Northern Irishman Brendan Dolan on Friday.

In the final round one clash of the Championships, debutant Berry van Peer caused an upset to knock out Englishman Luke Woodhouse 3-2.

Woodhouse landed six maximums but lost out to Dutchman Van Peer in a high-quality encounter.

Van Peer was making his first appearance at Alexandra Palace after coming back from struggles with dartitis and was able to regroup impressively after he missed two match darts at 2-1 up before he landed double 10 in the decider to become the last player into round two.

Number 32 seed Madars Razma set up a third-round clash with defending champion Michael Smith after a 3-1 win over Mike de Decker.