Singapore's Paul Lim, 71, becomes oldest winner of match at World Darts Championship

LONDON: A year after Luke Littler became the youngest winner of the PDC World Darts Championship, 71-year-old Paul Lim on Saturday (Dec 13) became the oldest winner of a match in the tournament's history.

Roared on by the usual raucous Alexandra Palace crowd, the Singapore veteran stunned Dutch-born Swede Jeffrey de Graaf.

The previous oldest player to win a round was Northern Ireland's John MaGowan in 2008 when he was 67.

Lim will face former world champion Luke Humphries next, a player he beat at the tournament five years ago.

"So I hope on a given day it can happen again (if I play him), but I never give up. He is good, but he can be beaten," Lim, known as the Singapore Slinger, said after his 3-1 win.

Lim's longevity has made him one of the most iconic names in darts, and in 1990, he became the first player to hit a world championship nine-darter at the BDO tournament.

Littler, who won the title in January aged 17, began his quest on Thursday with a 3-0 win over Darius Labanauskas.