Luke Littler tipped to follow through with Netherlands boycott as worrying point made

A former world champion has suggested Luke Littler will likely follow through with his threat to boycott events in the Netherlands.

Littler claimed he would boycott events in the nation, having already skipped tournaments in Germany, after receiving a negative reception from Dutch fans during the World Series of Darts Finals in September.

A section of supporters jeered, whistled and booed Littler throughout his match against Dutchman Danny Noppert, as well as his victory over Nathan Aspinall in the next round.

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Luke Littler threatens boycott of events in the Netherlands

When pressed on the matter during the tournament, Littler said: “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 whilst I'm getting booed.

“I just want to play my darts, obviously sign autographs and stuff. Because the past two nights I've done nothing. I've just walked off stage, not thanked anyone.”

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Luke Littler tipped to skip Dutch events

Several members of the darts community, including 16-time world champion Phil Taylor and former PDC chief Barry Hearn, have since urged Littler to simply ignore and rise above negative interactions with fans.

However, three-time BDO world champion Glen Durrant believes Littler could walk away from events in the Netherlands after all.

Speaking to Daily Star Sport, via OLBG, he 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.”

When asked whether Littler should feel an obligation to appear at events in the Netherlands, he added: “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.”

Littler has since suffered a shock defeat to Luke Woodhouse in the first round of the World Grand Prix.

After his victory, Woodhouse called on fans to get behind Littler and “appreciate” his talents.

"I hope people will take the time to appreciate how good he is and not give him a hard time and I mean really sit behind him,” he said.

"You might not see another Luke Littler ever again."

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