- Michael van Gerwen questioned Luke Littler’s professionalism on Wednesday
- Littler turned up to a photoshoot 45 minutes late after falling asleep at his hotel
- Another rival, Stephen Bunting, said Littler left the players ‘frozen’ outside
Luke Littler’s rivals have hit out at the teenage sensation after he turned up late for a photoshoot ahead of the start of his Premier League title defence in Belfast tonight.
The eight players were due to get in front of the cameras for a pre-event photoshoot on Wednesday afternoon, but Littler arrived 45 minutes late after over-sleeping.
Seven-time Premier League champion Michael van Gerwen was far from happy with Littler’s timekeeping as he accused the 18-year-old of lacking professionalism and being treated like a baby by PDC bosses.
Speaking on Wednesday, Van Gerwen said: ’45 minutes late, you mean. They need to stop treating him like a baby. He’s not a baby anymore, he’s 18-years-old now.
‘It happens. He has to learn. You have to learn the hard way. It’s a professional sport so you have to be responsible for your actions. Simple as that.
‘If he turns up late for an interview, I don’t mind! But seven other people are waiting for him. That’s not very nice, is it?’
Darts world champion Luke Littler has been accused of being ‘unprofessional’ and being treated like a baby by Michael van Gerwen
Littler turned up late for a photoshoot ahead of the start of the Premier League Darts season after over-sleeping
Stephen Bunting claimed Littler’s lateness left his rivals ‘frozen’ as they waited outside for him
Stephen Bunting – who lost to Littler in the World Championship semi-finals last month – was also unimpressed as he told the assembled media that the players had been left ‘frozen’ as they waited outside in the cold for Littler to arrive.
Littler did eventually turn up and the photoshoot took place as scheduled.
He was then pictured out for dinner with his family and friends at a local steakhouse, and appeared in good spirits ahead of his return to the oche.
Littler will face Van Gerwen in his first Premier League match on Thursday night, and insisted he was unaffected by the Dutchman’s criticism.
‘You know what Michael’s like,’ the reigning world champion said. ‘He called me lazy. I was just laughing at him.
‘I’ve not watched the whole (Ally Pally) final back – only the winning double. He’s going to be up for it, he’s going to be hungry. But I am up for it as the reigning champion.’
The rivalry between Littler and Van Gerwen has been building in recent months and came to a head at the World Championship as they met in the final at Alexandra Palace.
Littler picked up a 7-3 victory to break Van Gerwen’s record of being the youngest world champion ever.
The rivalry between Littler and Van Gerwen has been growing and they met in last month’s World Championship final, with Littler emerging victorious
Littler appeared unaffected by Van Gerwen’s criticism as he went to a steakhouse for dinner and was happy to pose for photos
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The latest chapter of their rivalry will take place on Thursday, while Bunting will also be in action alongside world No1 Luke Humphries, Rob Cross, Gerwyn Price, Chris Dobey and Nathan Aspinall.
The tournament begins in Belfast and will run for 17 weeks at venues around England, as well as Dublin, Glasgow, Cardiff, and the Netherlands.
The playoffs will be held at The O2 in London on Thursday, May 29, with the semi-finals and final all taking place on the same evening.
