Luke Littler has threatened to boycott future darts tournaments in the Netherlands after being left incensed by sustained booing during the World Series of Darts Finals in Amsterdam. 'The Nuke' faced jeers and whistles while at the oche and confronted the spectators before suffering defeat to Jonny Clayton in the quarter-finals, ending his remarkable opportunity to claim every major tournament within a calendar year as Ross Smith ultimately secured the trophy.
Littler's frustration and boycott threat
Drawing parallels with his decision to skip competitions in Germany owing to comparable crowd issues, Littler raged: "With the Germans, I haven't been for a long time, we will have to see in Dortmund (for the European Championship) whether it changes or stays the same. If the Dutch stay like this, then I'm not going to do any Euro tours over there."
"There's just no point in me travelling, wasting my time while I'm getting booed. I just want to play my darts, obviously sign autographs. The past two nights, I've done nothing; I've just walked off stage without thanking anybody. There's no point thanking everyone when they are booing me."
Durrant's verdict on the boycott
In an exclusive interview with Daily Star Sport, via OLBG, Sky Sports pundit and 2020 Premier League champion Glen Durrant acknowledged the uncomfortable position Littler faces, but claimed it would prove a greater loss to Dutch supporters than to Littler should he withdraw.
Durrant said: "He's done it before. Obviously, he doesn't play in the Euro Tours in Germany. He's still sticking with the majors, the World Cup, and the European Championships is a competition he's really identified he wants to win this year.
"It wasn't very pleasant. He's at this point now where he's just so big in the game. I think the biggest loss to the Dutch fans would be having no Littler. It was very, very hostile, and I think his words were something like, 'I don't really need it'. So it was a real shame. It wasn't very pleasant to listen to. I thought he got the best of order against Johnny Clayton."
Van Barneveld's plea ignored
Durrant even pointed out that Dutch darts icon Raymond van Barneveld made a plea to the fans not to boo Littler, but was completely ignored.
"Barney got onto the stage before the session started and just spoke in Dutch to say, 'look, we've got the best players in the world here. Let's see what the Dutch fans are all about. Don't let the headlines be the whistling and the booing against Littler'. So it's a tough one, really. I'll be interested in what he does."
When questioned whether Littler has an obligation to compete and represent the PDC in the Netherlands, despite his dissatisfaction, Durrant responded: "He's his own man, he's got a brilliant team around him. He's this generational talent who's probably earned more money already than Phil Taylor has in all the years he won the 16 titles. Has he got a duty? It's a good question. We want him to play.
"The crowd would miss him if he didn't play. But, like I say, he's very much his own man. If he doesn't want to go to a tournament, then he won't. I've publicly said I don't think the longevity of a James Wade or Phil Taylor will be there in Luke Littler. So I say to people, enjoy him while we can.
"And the last thing we need to do is booing and whistling, because I don't think he'll suit the pantomime bad guy like a Paul Nicholson did, like a Gerwyn Price did. I just don't think he's got the personality to deal with that."
