Luke Littler remained unfazed by the hostile crowd in Rotterdam during Night 11 of the Premier League Darts, stating that the boos and whistles were 'exactly what I expected'. The crowd's negative reaction was a continuation of the controversy surrounding Littler's spat with Dutch No 1 Gian van Veen from Night Nine in Manchester.

Van Veen had won a contentious match, prompting Littler to react angrily after Van Veen turned towards him while throwing match darts, with the Dutchman claiming Littler was 'out of order' for 'celebrating towards the crowd'. Despite the crowd's animosity, Littler advanced to the final, where he ultimately lost to Premier League leader Jonny Clayton. 'It was exactly what I expected, the boos and whistles,' Littler told Sky Sports. 'But I knew as soon as I got on stage I could do my job.' Prior to his opening match against Gerwyn Price, Littler had vowed not to react to the crowd's taunts, but he couldn't resist responding in his semi-final clash with Luke Humphries.

When he levelled the match at 2-2, Littler gave a 'calm down' gesture to a section of fans and added some flamboyant flourishes with his darts in the next leg. Sky Sports' Wayne Mardle noted, 'Littler said he will not react, but he has just reacted - and they don't like it! I think he's had enough of not reacting. He is strutting and really giving it now.

When he has this swagger, he's hard to deal with. He's giving it the full repertoire. I like it!' Littler defeated Price 6-3 and edged out Humphries 6-5 before losing to Clayton 6-4 in the final, despite claiming the opening two legs in impressive fashion. Clayton's fourth nightly win of the 2026 campaign stretched his lead over Littler to five points at the top of the table.

Clayton praised Littler after the final, saying, 'I've got total respect for Luke. He's absolutely amazing. This guy has got years ahead of him, an amazing darts player - and he's shown us all the level we need to be to beat him.

But this old dog has got some life in him yet.' Sky Sports' Glen Durrant also commended Littler for his response to the crowd's taunts, stating, 'It's brutal in here tonight. I'm not sure I would have had the mental capacity to deal with it, but Littler is different.'