Luke Littler suffers SHOCK first-round defeat by the World No 116 – who only just returned to darts after 15 years away – at the Players Championship 13

Luke Littler was knocked out of the Players Championship 13 in the first round after a shock defeat by World No116 Robert Grundy. 

The teenage sensation had been enjoying a break from darts after missing out on England’s Darts World Cup team and was making his first return since his victory at the Polish Masters.

However, it was not the comeback that the 17-year-old would have envisioned after he appeared off form and averaged a mere 79.02 on Tuesday evening.

Perhaps Littler had expected the match to be a formality, given the fact Grundy only returned to darts in January after a 15-year spell away from the sport.

However, that was far from the case as the 46-year-old produced a stunning performance to triumph over ‘The Nuke’ and secure a 6-5 win. 

Littler was defeated by World No116 Robert Grundy – who only just returned to the sport

Littler had initially lost the first two legs before breaking back in the third and finishing on 86 in the fourth to level the tie. 

He then pushed on and secured the next two legs and was in the driving seat before Grundy hit back with three legs on the bounce to put Littler in hot water.

Littler managed to win the crucial tenth leg but in the decider, Grundy opened with a maximum and took out tops to hold his throw and stun the teenage sensation. 

Grundy only secured his tour card at the PDC’s Qualifying School in January – following a 15-year hiatus away from the sport.

Speaking at the time, he said: ‘For many years, I thought I could do it. But to actually do it, it’s amazing. Just everything’s come out of me now.

‘Since I was young, I thought of being professional so to be here at my age, I can’t wait. I feel 16 again I really do.

‘It hasn’t sunk in, but it has. My heart is going ten to a dozen now. I was literally nobody since last year. I’m a labourer. 

‘My boss who sponsors me saw something in me backed us and it’s just took this year and last year to get to where I am’.

Littler was not included in the top two Englishmen on the PDC’s Order of Merit and was excluded from the England team for the Darts World Cup

Despite his sensational rise throughout the sport, Littler was not included in the top two Englishmen on the PDC’s Order of Merit, according to The Express, and thus was excluded from their team for the World Cup. 

Instead, Luke Humphries – who beat Littler in the World Championship final earlier this year – and Michael Smith made the cut ahead of Littler. 

Humphries has earned a staggering £1,492,250 in tournament winnings in the last two years, while Smile has pocketed a comfy £1,031,500.

Littler, in comparison, is yet to crack the top five and still trails behind Nathan Aspinall, Rob Cross and Dave Chisnall.