Littler Explains 'Cry Baby' Comment Aimed at Van Veen

Luke Littler has shed light on why he referred to Gian van Veen as a 'cry baby' following their intense Premier League Darts match in Manchester. According to Littler, Van Veen essentially gave 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 became upset after Van Veen turned towards him while throwing match darts in the decisive leg. Van Veen had told Sky Sports that Littler was 'out of order' for celebrating towards the crowd, which led him to stare at Littler. However, Littler shared his side of the story for the first time, stating that as he walked back, he was still looking at the crowd, and Van Veen had put his darts down, which Littler found disrespectful. Littler expressed that he called Van Veen a 'cry baby' because there was no need for Van Veen's actions. When Van Veen won, Littler congratulated him and picked up his darts. Littler also mentioned that there was no need for Van Veen to stare at him when he had not thrown his three darts yet. He added that from his perspective, he was looking at the TV, thinking that Van Veen would not miss, given his reputation as one of the best bull hitters in the game. Littler stated that when Van Veen came inside double 15, he looked up, had a drink, and did a fist bump towards his girlfriend and her dad, which is when the fans started screaming. Littler felt that Van Veen should have stepped back, looked at the floor, and thrown his last dart instead of staring at him. Littler recently had his worst televised average in Brighton, which he attributed to a lack of practice and not wanting to be there. Van Veen also lost his first match, and the two did not speak to each other, practicing in different rooms. Littler believes that other incidents in darts have been more heated than his exchange with Van Veen, citing arguments between Gerwyn Price and Daryl Gurney. He thinks that the rivalry between him and Van Veen will draw more viewers and create a more exciting competition.