Luke Littler v Raymond van Barneveld: Teen faces five-time world champion at PDC World Darts Championship

While Littler has acknowledged Van Barneveld as one of his heroes, the admiration extends both ways.

After his win on Friday that confirmed their meeting, Van Barneveld described Littler’s talent as “something else”.

“He’s on another level,” said Van Barneveld, won BDO world titles in 1998, 1999, 2003 and 2005 before moving to the PDC and triumphing in the 2007 final.

But the Dutchman also added that he would not be too caught up in the attention surrounding their encounter.

“I don’t play the player, I play the board. I’m not afraid of Michael van Gerwen, I’m not afraid of [Luke] Humphries, I’m not afraid of Phil Taylor and I’m not afraid of Luke Littler.”

While Littler’s rise has been the most eye-catching, Van Barneveld’s career trajectory has been far from straightforward.

After retiring in 2019, the Dutchman regained his PDC tour card in February 2021 through the qualifying school, but collapsed at an event in Milton Keynes just a month later.

He returned to the World Championship in 2022 – his 30th appearance there – but exited in the second round.

The other last-16 matches on Saturday include Rob Cross facing Welshman Jonny Clayton in the afternoon session and Luke Humphries taking on Joe Cullen in the evening.