Humphries and Littler 'won't click', predicts Wright

Peter Wright will represent Scotland at the World Cup, along with Gary Anderson

Luke Humphries and Luke Littler "won't click" despite being overwhelming favourites to defend the World Cup for England, according to Scotland's Peter Wright.

World number one Humphries and 2025 world champion Littler, making his debut at the event, are a long way clear of the rest in the PDC rankings.

But Wright, who is joined by fellow two-time world champion Gary Anderson for the third seeded Scots, has rejected any suggestion it is a fait accompli that the high-profile duo will prevail in Frankfurt.

"Look at the amount of really good England teams that have been paired up and they haven't clicked, like James Wade and Phil Taylor," Wright told BBC Sport Scotland.

"Littler is a fantastic player, a worthy world champion and all the other titles he has won, fantastic, but he is going up there playing pairs.

"I know he played as a youth for England, but whether he can do it in the seniors, I don't know. They might go out and bash everybody up, but I am thinking they won't click."

The highest-ranked players for each nation form the World Cup pairings, with Wright and Anderson the champions in 2019 and runners-up on three occasions.

Wright also won the event for Scotland with John Henderson in 2021.

And the 55-year-old went on to suggest that Littler, 18, should have offered to give up his place to open up the possibility of Michael Smith - who has dropped to 20th in the PDC order of merit - being afforded the opportunity to defend the title he and Humphries won last year.

"I think Michael should have been given the chance to retain his title," he added. "Gary stepped aside when me and John won it to give us a chance to do it again.

"Michael is a practiser, on the board all the time, Luke Humphries is a practiser. He'll be practising his backside off and Littler will be playing his games and eating his sweets, so hopefully they won't click."

Anderson, 54, and Wright may have enjoyed stellar careers but arrive in Germany ranked 13th and 14th respectively - and very much under the radar.

"I think it is down to the age thing, everyone is probably thinking 'those two old codgers can't do it again'," said Wright. "We might just surprise a few.

"The amount of titles that Gary has won, the amount of titles I have won, we have got the experience.

"When we get up there as a pair we always do well."