WAYNE MARDLE was left ‘sickened’ as Luke Littler made a frank admission about his form.
The darts sensation is leading his Grand Slam of Darts group, having dominated in his first two matches.
Littler, 17, won his opening match as he eased to a 5-0 win over Keane Barry, with an massive average of 112.16.
He followed that result up with a 5-1 thumping of Dimitri van den Burgh.
The Runcorn thrower held an impressive average of 108.30 during his victory over Van den Burgh.
However, Littler has insisted he is not finding it easy at the moment, which led to a brilliant reaction from Mardle.
Speaking on Sky Sports, he said: “I know I am playing well.
“With the lights on, it is not easy.”
A shocked Mardle replied: “Wow, it is kind of sickening, but it is also amazing to hear.
“As an outsider looking in at you throw, it is like this is kind of peak, but if you don’t feel that way… there’s more gears.”
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Meanwhile, current World Champion Luke Humphries has not enjoyed the same success at his namesake.
The Leeds ace has already been dumped out of the tournament in a shocking defence of his title.
On the opening night Humphries lost to Rowby-John Rodriguez before he suffered defeat to James Wade on Sunday.
Mardle has insisted that the title is up for grabs following Humphries’ exit.
He said: “The best player in the world is out. Anyone now will be thinking why can’t they go and win this.
“We’ve got to that point in darts now where no one is untouchable.
“When the top boys play well, they win, but when they play poorly, anyone can beat them.
“The last few months have proven that. The rest of the world will be thinking this might be their chance now the reigning champion is out.”
Inside Littler’s massive rise
LUKE LITTLER has taken the darts world by storm since exploding onto the scene at the PDC World Championship at the beginning of the year.