Luke Littler admits he missed vital dart after forgetting what number he was supposed to hit

Luke Littler has admitted that during the World Darts Championship final he missed an important dart after he forgot which number he was supposed to aim for.

There's much more to darts than just having a good throwing arm, you've got to know where on the board is best for you to hit.

That means a hell of a lot of mental arithmetic needs doing in a very short time to calculate your next target and it's pretty tough to do when you're facing more pressure than you ever have done in your life.

Littler did so well to make it through to the WDC final on his first go before Luke Humphries won their match 7-4 in a thrilling and dramatic contest.

Still, stepping into the crucible that is Ally Pally when you're only 16 with the World Darts Championship title on the line has got to be tough to deal with.

ITV

With that in mind, Littler has admitted that at one point he did miss with a vital dart because he forgot which number he was meant to hit.

Cast your mind back to the moment when Littler was up four sets to two with he and Humphries at two legs apiece.

The 16-year-old needed to hit 112 with three darts to take the third leg and extend his lead, and things were going pretty darn well when he hit the triple 18 twice.

Having just one dart left to take the leg and the set he then paused and turned to the announcer to discuss something, but when the time came to throw his third dart he missed the double two by a whisker.

With that Humphries hit the double 14 on his first go to take the leg and the set, bringing the score to 4-3 and marking the beginning of his comeback that saw him eventually win 7-4.

Sky Sports wondered if this was 'the agonising moment Littler lost his grip on World Darts glory', and their commentators noted it was the first time the darts prodigy had needed to pause to work something out.

Sky Sports

Appearing on Good Morning Britain the morning after the final, Littler explained that he was talking to the announcer and asking what number he had left as his mind had gone blank in the moment.

"I said to him 'is it four' and he must have said four, but I couldn't hear him because the crowd was so loud so I went 'four' and he went 'yeah' and I missed," Littler said of the moment.

He went on to explain how darts players crunch the numbers in their head, saying: "I think it's just the more you play, the more you get used to what you go for, what you set up and what you finish really.

"Just don't forget what you have to go for next, always know what to go for.

"From the world championships I'll take all the experience I've got, all the fans and all the fans that have gathered around me."

He's already broken records by making it to the final and a player as brilliant as Littler is bound to make a big impact on darts for years to come.