Luke Humphries went out in the last-16 at Ally Pally. (Image: Getty)
is not starting 2025 in the manner he would have wanted. Sure enough, he remains the world No.1 after a stellar 18 months on the circuit, but his ambitions of cementing that status by successfully defending his world title evaporated at Ally Pally .
With fans and pundits already salivating over the prospect of a Humphries vs semi-final, ‘Cool Hand Luke’ was the victim of a sublime display by Wright, who rolled back the years after a barren 12 months on the tour.
But as ever, the 29-year-old has remained measured. And he’s now aiming to use his heartbreak in London in a positive manner as he looks to regain the form that made him so formidable in 2024.
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“It’s a weird feeling,” he told Express Sport. “In a way, it’s like a weight lifted off your shoulders. You’re under so much scrutiny and so much pressure for a long long period of time when you’re world champion, every tournament you are expected to win and it’s just a weight of expectation.
“I know I still have that because I’ve won so much over the last 18 months and I’m still world No.1. But it does feel like… while I’d love that pressure to be on my shoulders again this year by being back-to-back world champion… it’s a weight lifted.”
Humphries believes he can now afford to “feel a bit more free and still go on and win lots of tournaments”. He remains top of the rankings by a considerable distance, but accepts it’s the other Luke currently dominating the media frenzy around the sport.
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Humphries is targeting the Premier League having lost to Luke Littler in the 2024 final. (Image: Getty)
And yet, that is a notion that Humphries is already used to. Despite also sealing two other major television titles last year, the World Matchplay and Players Championship Finals, it was his teenage rival who was the man in demand.
Not that it affected Humphries. As modest and down-to-earth as they come, he readily acknowledges that he is not currently the sport’s biggest draw, and he’s perfectly happy for things to stay that way.
“I wasn’t in the limelight really last year, so not much changes,” he said. “I’m kind of just going to go about doing the same as what I did last year. I’m not going to change much. I’ll keep doing what I’m doing, and I’m always going to be a threat in major tournaments.”
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Few will doubt that pledge. And he insists it’s not been difficult to overcome his World Championship disappointment and is ready mentally to succeed in Bahrain. “It’s been easy to motivate myself,” he added.
“For me, Alexandra Palace was about three weeks ago now, so it’s been a decent break. It’s a great tournament; we all want to win this. You don’t fly six hours across the sea to not come and win. It’s the first tournament we all want after the world’s, and we all want to start the year off in a good way.”
Few would be surprised if Humphries did indeed bounce back from losing his world title with success in the Middle East. And regardless of whether he’s the No.1 star away from the oche, displacing him as No.1 on it, even for a certain teenage sensation, will take some doing in 2025.