Humphries’ winning run comes to an end with quarter-final defeat in Bahrain

Luke Humphries suffered his first defeat in 21 matches when he lost 6-4 to Gerwyn Price in the quarter-finals of the Bahrain Darts Masters.

Humphries, who was crowned world champion at the beginning of the month, has dominated the darting world since October, winning four of the last five major titles.

Yet his run came to an end in Sakhir, southern Bahrain, when he lost to outspoken Welshman Gerwyn Price 6-4 in the last eight.

Teenage supremo Luke Littler, who Cool Hand beat in a thrilling World Championship final, edged past Michael van Gerwen in the final to become the third player ever to win a World Series title on his debut.

“You’re never going to be happy about losing but that was going to come and you can’t be perfect all the time,” said Humphries.

“I’m really disappointed because the way I played there wasn’t my best and I had so many opportunities to win the game.

“Gezzy (Gerwyn Price) took advantage of my misses and fair play to him; my scoring wasn’t at my best but this game is about millimetres and if you don’t take those chances, you don’t win.

“I’ve got a lot to look forward to this year so it won’t drag me down too much. I think the last time I lost was October 29 so it’s been an amazing run for me and it had to come to an end one day.”

The 28-year-old Humphries will make his Premier League debut on February 1 in Cardiff. Cool Hand will be joined by fellow debutant Luke Littler, seven-time winner Michael van Gerwen and 2023 world champion Michael Smith for the lucrative 17 week event, which takes some of the sport’s best players across the UK and Europe.