Luke Humphries' World Cup adventure was about to end in the third round. The English front-runner faced an early exit to Ricardo “Pikachu” Petriczko, but has corrected the lopsided situation. “Mentally and physically, this was one of the toughest matches I've ever played,” he said after his return.
His arrowhead was broken, so he had to play with a new set.
It's not as obvious for Luke Humphries, who has never really gotten into a rhythm that way. “At one point it looked like I was playing darts in Germany,” the England World Cup favorite says of the hostile atmosphere in the room.
This combination of factors gave Ricardo Petrichko a 3-1 lead. Pikachu was one step away from a real trick.
But then the Humphreys class came along.
He challenged the crowd and his opponent to pull out all the stops. The consistency of his pitching improved, as did his average, which eventually reached 91.
3-2, 3-3,… Is Pikachu's dream shattered? Humphreys put an end to it with a powerful three-legged finish: 3-4. The primal scream and victory gesture indicate how important victory was to the Englishman.
“Mentally and physically, this was probably one of the toughest matches I've ever played,” he said. “Everyone is pressuring me to become world champion, so to come back like this is great.”
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