Littler Explains 'Cry Baby' Comment Aimed at Van Veen

Luke Littler has shed light on the reason behind his 'cry baby' remark directed at Gian van Veen following their intense Premier League Darts match in Manchester. According to Littler, Van Veen seemed to give up towards the end of the match, prompting the comment. The controversy began when Van Veen won a disputed match earlier in April, during which Littler reacted angrily after Van Veen turned towards him while throwing match darts in a dramatic deciding leg. Van Veen had stated that Littler was 'out of order' for celebrating towards the crowd, which caused him to stare at Littler. However, Littler has now shared his side of the story ahead of the Premier League Darts in Rotterdam. He revealed that as he walked back, Van Veen put his darts down, which Littler found disrespectful. Littler believes Van Veen was the one not doing his job and being disrespectful. He questioned Van Veen's actions, wondering why he felt the need to put his darts down. Littler also stated that there was no need for Van Veen to stare at him when he still had not thrown his three darts. He added that from his perspective, he was looking up at the TV, thinking that Van Veen would not miss his shot. Littler also mentioned that he did a fist bump towards his girlfriend and her dad, which is when the fans started screaming. Littler felt that Van Veen should have just stepped back, looked at the floor, and then thrown his last dart instead of staring at him. Littler recently produced his worst televised average in the Premier League Darts, which he attributed to a lack of practice and not wanting to be there. Van Veen also lost his first match, and the pair did not speak to each other, practicing in different rooms. Littler thinks that the incident has created a rivalry between them, but he is focused on his darts. The Premier League Darts continues every Thursday until May 28, live on Sky Sports.