Nathan Aspinall says Luke Humphries is the best darts player in the world “by a million miles” and that his Premier League rivals cannot beat him if he is at his best.
World No 1 and reigning world champion Humphries sits top of the Premier League standings on 26 points with five weeks left of the regular season, ahead of Luke Littler by virtue of nightly wins.
Cool Hand won three evenings on the spin in March, in Brighton, Nottingham and Dublin, while Littler went back-to-back in Belfast and Manchester on Nights Nine and 10 respectively.
Aspinall triumphed on Night 12 in Rotterdam last week, beating Humphries in the semi-finals, and sits third in the table on 23 points ahead of his quarter-final meeting with Humphries in Liverpool on Thursday, live on Sky Sports Arena from 7pm.
Aspinall told Sky Sports’ Love The Darts Podcast: “Standard-wise, Humphries is the best player in the world by a million miles. When he brings his A-game, we can’t beat him.
“He has been producing numbers that are obscene. I don’t even do that in a practice room, let alone on the stage.
“I beat him last week and can hopefully count on that experience and get another result but he is definitely the best player out there at the moment.”
Humphries and Luke Littler are the top two in the Premier League Darts Table after Night 12 in Rotterdam
Littler amazing for darts – but he is getting under our skin!
The Asp also said that the media attention teenager Littler has received after his run to the World Championship final at Alexandra Palace in January, at which he lost 7-4 to Humphries, has “got under the skin” of his Premier League opponents, although admits Littler has been a “fantastic addition” to the Premier League.
Luke Littler tested his football skills, alongside online content creator Pieface23, with a near perfect crossbar challenge!
“What he has done for the game is amazing,” Aspinall said of The Nuke.
“He has kind of got under everyone’s skin because of what he is doing and what he is getting.
Littler discusses his rivalry with Michael van Gerwen and more
“We are like: ‘Who is this kid that got to the final of the Worlds and is now getting this, that and the other?’ It does kind of get under your skin and we are there to knock him down as much as we can.
“But there is no denying that he is a fantastic talent and a great addition to the Premier League.”
Aspinall: Premier League only thing I care about
Aspinall – who thinks he is four points away from securing a top-four place and heading to London’s O2 Arena for the play-offs on May 23 – skipped last weekend’s European Darts Grand Prix, a tournament Gary Anderson won after beating Ross Smith 8-6 in the final.
The Asp said: “I am concentrating solely on the Premier League, I don’t care about anything else.
Speaking on Love The Darts, Aspinall says he is completely focused on winning the Premier League and does not care about anything else at the moment
“You play for the big titles, the big paychecks, the big trophies, and apart from the World Championship, there is nothing bigger than the Premier League.
“I hate going to ProTours, I just hate them. I am a big-stage player. I first picked up a dart to play in big arenas, big tournaments, so I am concentrating purely on the Premier League
“Granted, I have fallen down the ProTour rankings and I won’t be a seed but I don’t care. I play these guys week in, week out and if I turn up and play Michael van Gerwen first round, so be it.”
Aspinall says he relishes the big occasion and struggles to look forward to ProTour events
On the battle for play-off positions, Aspinall added: “After [Michael Smith and I] made the final in Rotterdam, we believe Van Gerwen [in fourth on 22 points, two points ahead of Smith] is the one under pressure.
“Even the top boys aren’t safe on 26 points, so it is going to make an interesting watch over the next five weeks.”
Watch Night 13 of Premier League Darts, in Liverpool, live on Sky Sports Arena from 7pm on Thursday April 25 or stream with NOW.
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