Dutch darts player Gian van Veen has stated that he does not require a conversation with Luke Littler to put their on-stage spat behind them. The incident occurred during Night Nine of the Premier League in Manchester, where Van Veen won a contentious match.
Littler reacted angrily after Van Veen turned towards him while throwing match darts in a dramatic deciding leg. Van Veen deemed Littler's behavior as 'out of order' for celebrating towards the crowd, which caused him to stare at Littler. Littler later missed match darts at double and lost the contest.
In a recent interview, Littler shared his perspective on the incident, stating that his celebrations were directed towards his girlfriend and dad. He also called Van Veen a 'cry baby' for putting his darts down before the match was over. Despite hearing Littler's side of the story, Van Veen's opinion on the incident remains unchanged.
Van Veen expressed that he has no hard feelings towards Littler and is looking forward to their potential semi-final match in Rotterdam. The Dutch player enjoys the competitive atmosphere in darts but prefers not to be directly involved in conflicts. Van Veen is excited to play in front of his home crowd in Rotterdam and hopes to have a positive experience. Meanwhile, Michael van Gerwen believes that the spat between Van Veen and Littler has been exaggerated and that it is not a significant issue.
The 'Green Machine' stated that if the incident were a big deal, he and Phil Taylor would have been in the news every week due to their fiery clashes. Commentators Michael Bridge and Chris Murphy discussed the incident on the Love The Darts podcast, with Bridge stating that Littler likes to play the role of a 'WWE pantomime villain' and that the crowd's reaction did not help. Littler has opened up about expecting a frosty welcome from the Dutch crowd in Rotterdam but is prepared to focus on his game.
He expressed his desire to improve and move forward, hoping to secure more points and nightly wins. The Premier League Darts will continue in Rotterdam, with Van Veen facing Luke Humphries and Michael van Gerwen facing Jonny Clayton. The top four players will progress to Finals Night at The O2 in London on May 28.