Luke Humphries proved far too strong for 71-year-old Paul Lim as the 2024 champion comfortably progressed to the third round of the PDC World Championship.
Humphries was in ruthless mood in the first two sets and won all of the first eight legs played, before Lim brought the biggest cheer of the night at Alexandra Palace by landing double top to clinch what would be his only leg of the contest.
Prior to the match, the world number two had described Lim as a “legend” and said a World Championship defeat by the Singapore veteran in December 2020 was a turning point in his career.
Their mutual respect was shown when the pair shared a warm handshake after Lim’s successful shot at double, and again once Humphries had wrapped up a dominant victory, with Humphries admitting he was “glad” Lim was able to win a leg.
The 30-year-old Englishman, who will play Germany’s Gabriel Clemens next, told Sky Sports: “Against someone you really like and you’re 6-0 up in legs, honestly it’s hard because you don’t want to destroy people all of the time. There are certain players that you want to, but certain players you don’t want to and he’s one that you don’t.
“It was a game I had to win, that was the most important thing and I put myself in a good position after the first two sets.
“He [Lim] is just a legend, I love him to bits and I hope that’s not the last time we see him on this stage.”
