Luke Littler embraced his headline billing at Alexandra Palace on Saturday night as he got his World Darts Championship underway with a hard-fought victory. However, opponent Ryan Meikle almost forgot to read the script.

The 28-year-old will have known he was not just playing against Littler but the rest of the packed room, who cheered home every dart that nestled between the wires. A few even cheered the strays from Meikle.

He was more than a match for Littler in the first two sets and may have gone into the third irked that he had not been two to the good. Littler was barely averaging 93 ahead of the final set, having looked a tad ring rusty but managing to eke 2-1 in front.

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The 17-year-old will celebrate his 18th birthday during the tournament but will nevertheless be the youngest ever winner of the trophy should he go all the way. And the fourth set showed why he is one of the favourites to do just that.

He rocketed his average up to 141 during the last set, having at one point been a centimetre away from a nine-darter as Meikle struggled to keep pace. After a shaky start, Littler ended up strolling over the line with ease to shake away the early cobwebs.

The Sky Sports commentary team went as far as suggesting Littler's final set may have been one of the best in championship history. The paying fans were certainly entertained and chanted his name throughout the contest with barely a pause in the praise.

During his post-match interview, Littler broke down with emotion as the fans serenaded him. It is easy to forget how young the superstar is - he qualified for, and won, the Young Sports Personality of the Year award earlier this week.

His growth has become so enormous that he became the first darts player to finish inside the top three of the main SPOTY prize since the great Phil ‘The Power’ Taylor in 2010. The Nuke himself has made a giant impact on British sport.

Meikle was a credit throughout, playing his part as the pantomime villain and jesting the crowd when he produced a fine finish halfway through. He shared some kind words with Littler after the final dart was thrown. Even the officials had a laugh with the teenager.

World number one Luke Humphries breezed through to the third round some six days ago but there is no doubt who is the star attraction. Littler showed he was willing to inherit this title after the tit-for-tat first set.

The crowd were pensive as Littler went 2-1 down in legs, something he obviously could feel. After managing to sneak over the line and strike first blood, the Warrington arrow-smith pumped out his chest to his joyous supporters and told them: “I’m here, relax.”

He knows who they came to see. He understands what is expected of him. He is him. And for now, the script remains intact.