Luke Littler suffers deciding-leg defeat as Cam Crabtree books World Youth Championship final spot

Luke Littler’s World Youth Championship bid ended on Monday as Cam Crabtree won a deciding leg to secure a 6-5 semi-final victory.

Crabtree will face Germany’s Jan Schmidt in the final, denying Littler another appearance in the tournament’s televised showpiece.

The world number one had entered as top seed, as outlined in Dave’s World Youth Championship preview.

Crabtree holds firm after Littler comeback

According to Sky Sports’ match report, Crabtree opened a 2-0 lead before Littler responded with three successive legs.

A 164 checkout helped turn the match in Littler’s favour, but Crabtree recovered to move within a leg of victory at 5-4.

Littler’s 117 finish forced the decider. Crabtree then held his throw in 16 darts, completing the win on double six.

When is the World Youth Championship final?

The final takes place at Butlin’s Minehead Resort on Sunday 29 November, during the Players Championship Finals weekend.

Littler won the youth title in 2023, but this year’s trophy will go to Crabtree or Schmidt.

His elimination follows an early World Grand Prix exit, although this contest went down to the final leg.

For Crabtree, beating the top seed earns the opportunity to finish the job on the televised stage next month.

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