Former world champion Rob Cross says Luke Littler and Luke Humphries “can’t win everything between them” as he prepares for Night Five of the Premier League in Brighton on Thursday.
World No 1 Humphries and reigning world champion Littler continue to be the stars of the men’s game, with James Wade questioning the standards across the PDC ranks, saying he doesn’t think it’s what it’s hyped up to be.
Humphries has enjoyed a terrific start to the Premier League season, claiming a brace of nightly wins in Belfast and Exeter, while also finishing runner-up in Glasgow.
Reigning champion Littler will also headline Thursday’s action on the south coast, fresh from his sensational UK Open triumph on Sunday.
“I think consistency-wise at the minute, it’s probably fair to say that they’re the two best players in the world and by a little way,” Cross told Sky Sports.
“That’s not saying that darts is sporadic every week. We’ve all got a threshold, including the two Lukes. If you put pressure on them, then maybe on certain days that you will get results.
“They can’t win everything between them. But at the minute, they’re probably the most consistent two players on the planet.”
Discussing the impact of teenage-sensation Littler, Cross said: “I tip my hat to him, I was a little bit surprised of how well he handled his first world championships. But every day since, he’s showed his class and going forward, I’m never really sort of too surprised with him, to be honest.
“He’s like a celebrity now, isn’t he? And for him doing all these great things, I think every dart player is going to benefit from it. The PDC will benefit, the players will benefit if the money goes up and other stuff. As ambassadors of the game we have to look at the bigger picture and if it drags more sponsorship in and stuff, I think it’s brilliant for everyone involved. You should be grateful that you’re there and embrace what you’ve got in front of you.”
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Watch all 20 of Littler’s maximums from Night Four of the Premier League in Exeter
Cross and Humphries will renew their rivalry on Night Five of the BetMGM Premier League in Brighton, as Cross targets his first nightly win of the campaign. Humphries overcame Cross on his way to victory in Exeter, converting a hat-trick of ton-plus checkouts to deny ‘Voltage’ in a compelling semi-final tussle.
The pair lock horns at The Brighton Centre, and Cross is determined to rediscover his best form.
“I’ve been a little bit up and down with form,” he said. “I’ve had some really great games and then I’ve had some sort of mediocre games, I would call them, where it’s not quite happened.
“Going forward now, though, I’m just trying to get a grip of being consistent every week. If I can do that, I’ll be absolutely fine. I’m still enjoying it. It’s just sometimes it just doesn’t seem to sort of click on the night or in a game.”
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Rob Cross took advantage of Van Gerwen’s missed match darts to secure victory in their quarter-final clash in Exeter
Speaking on Love The Darts podcast, Michael Bridge and Richard Ashdown don’t think Littler and Humphries are able to dominate the game like Phil Taylor and Michael van Gerwen have done in previous years.
“With the strength of darts in general I don’t think anyone can dominate,” said Bridge. “Darts is in such a great position tournament after tournament. Total domination was when Phil was doing it, I didn’t see enough players really getting on that practice board. I don’t think Littler will dominate but is he going to win more majors.”
Ashdown said: “We’re in a rare position with two players being so dominant. Last time I remember feeling like this was near the end of Phil Taylor’s powers and the early Van Gerwen where they were overlapping. We were saying ‘one or the other will win it’ and that’s how it feels at the moment.”
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