Michael van Gerwen has already made his opinion clear about the prospect of losing to a woman, ahead of his clash with Beau Greaves at the Mr Vegas Grand Slam of Darts.
Van Gerwen is set to face Greaves for the first time on Saturday, November 8, when they meet in the opening round of the competition in Wolverhampton.
The 21-year-old Englishwoman has been in sensational form, enjoying a record-breaking run on the PDC Women's Series circuit, where she has won 86 consecutive matches.
And at the recent World Youth Championships, Greaves defeated reigning world champion Littler 6-5 to progress through to the final.
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Her rapid rise in the sport has seen her accept a PDC Tour Card, while she is also set to play at next month's World Championships at the Alexandra Palace.
Before that, though, she will take on three-time world champion van Gerwen.
The Dutchman has been vocal about his thoughts on women competing in darts.
Back in 2018, he was asked about the inclusion of women, and said: "Why wouldn't a woman be as good as a man?
"I wouldn't like to lose to a woman, but I don't like losing to anyone."
The 36-year-old continued: "Fallon Sherrock won a tournament at the weekend with a 96 average, she would now have the chance to try and do that against the men.
"The prize money is going up, the field is getting bigger, it's all good for darts.
"And it will give the women a chance to win more money by getting to the second round in the PDC than they would get for winning the women's title in the BDO."
Greaves and van Gerwen have been drawn in a challenging group at the Grand Slam of Darts.
They will also face two-time world champion Gary Anderson and the talented young German Niko Springer.
But it is not the only group that promises drama in Wolverhampton.
Group A includes world number one Luke Humphries, Nathan Aspinall and Michael Smith.
While, Littler has received a more favourable draw with Daryl Gurney, Connor Scutt and Karel Sedlacek.
Greaves arrives at the Grand Slam high on confidence, following another victory over Littler at a MODUS exhibition night in Derby.
She defeated Littler 6-2 to record her second win over the reigning world champion in just three weeks.
For Littler, next week's Grand Slam of Darts could provide the opportunity to finally become world number one, especially given his favourable draw.
Topics: Darts, Michael van Gerwen, Luke Littler
James Taylor