{"id":219444,"date":"2024-12-18T09:51:32","date_gmt":"2024-12-18T13:51:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/?p=219444"},"modified":"2024-12-18T09:51:33","modified_gmt":"2024-12-18T13:51:33","slug":"luke-humphries-whitewashes-tricole-to-progress-in-world-darts-championship","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/luke-humphries-whitewashes-tricole-to-progress-in-world-darts-championship\/","title":{"rendered":"Luke Humphries Whitewashes Tricole to Progress in World Darts Championship"},"content":{"rendered":"
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It\u2019s a stat that can weigh heavily on the reigning PDC darts world champion: no holder of the trophy has lost their first game in their title defense since 2008.<\/p>

\"\"<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Whether Luke Humphries was aware of that fact or not remains to be seen, but he certainly made light work of his first game in the 2025 edition of the showpiece.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So much so, he whitewashed opponent Thibaut Tricole; winning every single leg of the contest.<\/p>

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What a way to get your World Championship defense up and running\u2026<\/p>

\"\"<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Champion Mentality<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Humphries is priced at +300 in the World Darts Championship odds<\/a> from Paddy Power, ahead of former world champions Gary Anderson (+1000) and Michael van Gerwen (+1100).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The likes of World Grand Prix winner Mike de Decker (+2500) and another former world champion, Michael Smith (+2500), are also prominent in the darts odds<\/a>, but none of those have had a stellar year on a par with \u2018Cool Hand\u2019 in 2024.<\/p>

\"\"<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n

He started the year in the best possible fashion, winning the World Championship at London\u2019s Alexandra Palace \u2013 achieving the pinnacle of the sport and a lifelong dream in the process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

\ud83c\udf84Merry Dartsmas!

I can’t wait to get up that hill and start the defence of my title.

It’s been a great year, and I’m fully focused on going back home with the \ud83c\udfc6

See you all tonight \ud83d\udc99

\ud83d\udcf8 PDC @ModusDarts180<\/a> @reddragondarts<\/a> @cygroup2<\/a> @TaylorMaxwellCo<\/a> @VibePay<\/a> Radamec pic.twitter.com\/sqr3fvvUQp<\/a> \u2014 Luke Humphries (@lukeh180) December 15, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

But the 29-year-old hasn\u2019t rested on his laurels since. Humphries won the World Matchplay crown in July, completing what is arguably a double of the most prestigious trophies in the PDC.<\/p>

\"\"<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n

He also added the Players Championship Finals title<\/a> to his collection, while alongside Smith he also won the World Cup for England in a silverware-laden campaign.<\/p>

\"\"<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n

As if all that wasn\u2019t enough, there were also final appearances at other big tournaments: the U.K. Open, the World Grand Prix, and the Premier League, at which he wasn\u2019t quite able to get over the line.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But with such an impressive resum\u00e9, who would wager against Humphries adding another world title to his collection in January?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Eating a Bagel<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Three is the magic number in the second round of the World Darts Championship: the players need to win three legs to claim a set, and then three sets to win the game.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And so if a player wins the first nine legs in a row, they are said to have \u2018bagelled\u2019 their opponent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s the equivalent of the perfect game, and Humphries \u2013 while far from perfection on the day \u2013 still had enough firepower to bagel Thibaut Tricole in the opening game of the defense of his world crown.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The unique format of the World Championship sees two qualifiers compete in a first-round game. The winner goes on to play their second-round tie on the very same night against the seeded player.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

A convincing start from the reigning World Champ \ud83c\udfc6 pic.twitter.com\/DhdF7FQFbt<\/a> \u2014 PDC Darts (@OfficialPDC) December 15, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

That familiarity with the big stage and the conditions can be an advantage for the typically lower-ranked player, but Humphries made light work<\/a> of Tricole\u2019s supposed edge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Frenchman had earlier beaten Joe Comito, the Australian qualifier, in the first round, but Humphries \u2013 the world number one \u2013 is a different animal altogether. He only threw two 180s and had a checkout success of a lowly 34.6%, but it was too much for Tricole all the same in a straight sets thrashing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Can Humphries become the first back-to-back world champion since Gary Anderson in 2015-16?<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s a stat that can weigh heavily on the reigning PDC darts world champion: no holder of the trophy has lost their first game in their title defense since 2008. 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