Luke Littler has admitted that he has still not spoken to Gian van Veen in an attempt to smooth over their heated altercation. The pair clashed on night nine of the Premier League in Manchester three weeks ago, following a controversial victory for the Dutchman. Van Veen accused Littler of ‘celebrating towards the crowd’ when he missed key darts, sparking a tense exchange.
Frosty Relations Persist
Speaking after securing a night 12 win in Manchester, Littler revealed that the pair remain on non-speaking terms. “No, we have not spoken, but I'm not the type of person to go up and talk to him or something like that,” he said. “Maybe he is waiting for me to go and talk to him, but I'm not the type of person. Even in the practice room, people will talk to me first. I am not the type of person to be chatting away.”
Littler, a two-time world champion, added that he believes both players have moved on from the incident on stage, but off stage, communication remains absent. “We can obviously settle it on the dartboard. In the back room it has just been normal. It has just been the same preparation-wise. I think he's forgotten about it. I forgot about it. If I need to talk to him, then I will. I don't regret anything. Obviously, I had my opinion, he has got his opinion, so we are all entitled to it. I think we have both moved on with our game on stage, but off stage, obviously, we've not spoken. But yeah, I'm sure we will.”
Hostile Reception in Liverpool
Littler was met with another hostile reception this week as he secured victory in Liverpool. However, he insisted that it did not compare to the boos he was subjected to in Rotterdam earlier this month. “It is what it is [crowd booing]. I've won and we move on to next week. Rotterdam was way louder than this tonight. This week was nothing compared to last week. But I've just got to forget about it. I was focused, I definitely wanted to win tonight and that's what I've done. I even proved to people last week that I can win games under those circumstances and I've done it again. There is no anxiety there. I just expect the worst but it was not worse than Rotterdam. That is the worst I have experienced. It is good to come through those games under those circumstances.”
Looking Ahead
The Premier League will be back in action next week in Aberdeen. Littler will take on Josh Rock in the quarter-finals, while Van Veen is set to face Jonny Clayton. The ongoing rift between the two players adds an extra layer of intrigue to the tournament.
