Darts
2024 World Grand Prix Darts: Luke Humphries Joins Mike De Decker in the Final
Luke Humphries demolishes Ryan Joyce to keep his title defence alive and meet Mike De Decker in tomorrow’s final.
Defending champion Luke Humphries aimed to keep his title defence alive as he faced Newcastle’s Ryan Joyce for a spot in tomorrow’s final against Dimitri Van den Bergh.
World number one Humphries entered his eighth PDC televised semi-final since last year’s tournament, while Joyce was competing in only his second ever.
Their last semi-final meeting was at the 2023 Players Championship, where ‘Cool Hand Luke’ emerged victorious, a victory that set the stage for his eventual tournament win.
Humphries Surges Ahead
The reigning champion made a dream start, racing through the first three legs in under 17 darts to whitewash Ryan Joyce and secure an early 1-0 lead in sets.
Joyce quickly responded with some brilliant darts, averaging close to 120 over the first two legs of the second set. He looked poised to level the match, but Humphries, true to his world number one status, clawed his way back to steal the set 3-2, extending his lead to 2-0.
Despite being nearly level with Humphries in terms of averages, Joyce now faced an uphill battle to turn the match around.
Image credit: PDC
Joyce Learns the Hard Way
The match quickly became a harsh lesson for Joyce: facing the world’s best meant even his career-best darts weren’t enough. Despite playing brilliantly, he struggled to find a way past the reigning champion.
In the third set, Joyce averaged an impressive 105, yet Humphries once again snatched the set to extend his lead to 3-0.
Humphries was near flawless, relentlessly dominating the game. Joyce couldn’t keep pace, suffering another whitewash in the fourth set as the world number one surged to a commanding 4-0 lead.
The Champion’s Reign Continues
Humphries maintained his ‘cool’ throughout the match, delivering one of the most remarkable performances in World Grand Prix history.
He decisively defeated Joyce 5-0 in sets, securing his place in tomorrow’s final against Belgium’s Mike De Decker.
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