Luke Littler loses World Darts Championship record to 'absolute nutcase' as shock statement sent

Callan Rydz has broken a PDC World Darts Championship record that Luke Littler set last year after needing barely 15 minutes to beat Croatian qualifier Romeo Grbavac.

Rydz bettered the 106.12 three-dart average that Littler managed in the opening round of last year's tournament against former world champion Christian Kist with a 107.06 mark. Littler will not even have a chance to reclaim the record after receiving a bye to the second round as one of the top 32 seeds.

However, the teenager still holds the record for the highest average as a debutant and remains the youngest winner of a round. Littler will want to add becoming the youngest world champion to that list after losing last year's final.

However, in the absence of darts' most recognisable face, Rydz has been the story of the early rounds. The 26-year-old from Newcastle has won three ranking PDC titles before but had fallen to No.43 in the world rankings ahead of this tournament.

Opening up on a difficult last 24 months after the first-round win, Rydz acknowledged: "I'm quite a lazy person – I don't like practising, and I've missed some events because I didn't turn up and didn't want to play, which is the wrong attitude to have.

"On stage, I've been absolutely shocking for the last two years, so if this is a turning point, then happy days. If you spend Christmas at home and you don't come back down here, it's a real kick in the backside.

"Was my 107 average a statement? We'll see if I can back it up on Sunday."

Rydz embraces being an emotional person, adding: "I'm a fruitcake, I'll happily admit it. I'm an absolute nutcase.

"But it's like I've said to a few people - if I waited five seconds, nothing gets said, but it's just my personality. I like to show emotion."