Luke Littler made history by winning his Grand Slam of Darts quarter-final in record-breaking fashion.
The Nuke destroyed Jermaine Wattimena 16-2 to reach the last four in Wolverhampton.
That result is the heaviest Grand Slam quarter-final victory in history.
In doing so, Littler has moved into the world’s top 16-ranked players.
He also set up a clash with Gary Anderson in the semi-finals on Sunday.
Littler wasted no time in securing his progression as he posted a 105.11 average across his 18 legs of action.
Meanwhile, his dominant victory inflicted Wattimena to the heaviest ever defeat in the quarter-finals of the Grand Slam.
The teenage darts sensation also extended his winning record against his Dutch opponent.
He has now won all three meetings with Wattimena after two previous clashes on the Euro Tour earlier this year.
That is despite the Machine Gun enjoying an impressive year of his own, having reached the final of last month’s European Championship.
It could have been even better for the 17-year-old, though, as he came agonisingly close to a nine-darter.
Littler threw eight perfect darts in the second leg before missing double 12.
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He also pinned three 100-plus finishes on his way to establishing a 10-2 lead before closing out the victory with six legs on the spin.
After the match, Littler told Sky Sports: “I felt very confident coming into tonight.
“I just thought to myself it’s little bursts. I played so well, I’m so happy, and fair play to Jermaine. I was just too good today.”
Meanwhile, when asked if his success had happened faster than he expected, he added: “No.
“It just goes to show how well I’ve played in the ranking tournaments. I have looked ahead and if I do win this competition I go to five, but I’m just looking at the semi-final tomorrow.”
Littler is now on the verge of the top 10 in the PDC Order of Merit after less than a year on the tour.
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Lifting the trophy on Sunday would even see him climb as high as fifth in the world over a month before his 18th birthday.
The darting prodigy now joins Mickey Mansell and Martin Lukeman in the semi-finals, where he’ll face Anderson for a spot in the final.
