World No 1 Luke Littler and Gian van Veen could be reunited in Brighton after a heated exchange in Manchester last Thursday.
Van Veen called Littler “out of order” after their fiery quarter-final. In a tense deciding leg, Van Veen missed a match dart and turned to see Littler celebrating in front of the crowd. Littler then made an angry gesture as Van Veen returned to the oche. Littler missed his chance to throw for the match and Van Veen took the win, after which Littler made a crying gesture to the crowd before a brief handshake.
The two could meet in Brighton if Van Veen beats Michael van Gerwen and Littler defeats Stephen Bunting in their respective quarter-finals.
Luke Humphries, who expressed some sympathy for Littler, said the incident “comes with the territory” and expects it to be forgotten in a couple of weeks. “It’s hot news right now. In two weeks it will all be forgotten, no one will remember it and we’ll all move on,” he added, saying needle is not necessary for the game but “if it happens, it happens.”
Sky Sports pundit Wayne Mardle said Littler escalated matters by celebrating an inside on D15, likening Littler’s reaction to giving the Simon Whitlock “well done” gesture. Mardle suggested Van Veen handled it better and quipped Littler “got caught with his hand in the cookie jar.” Littler later posted a list of his TV titles on Instagram with the caption “goodnight, god bless, thank you Manchester” and mocked Van Veen’s remarks with laughing emojis.
Humphries says he is in a pivotal phase of his title defence. The defending champion sits sixth on 11 points, with Van Veen fifth on 12 and Michael van Gerwen in fourth. Humphries has yet to win a night this season; Littler has three nightly wins, Gerwyn Price and Jonny Clayton two each, and Stephen Bunting one. Humphries has reached the semi-finals four times this season and made one final, losing 6-1 to Clayton on Night Six in Nottingham. He returns to Brighton on Thursday, where he hit a nine-darter against Rob Cross last year.
“It’s a game I probably have to win,” Humphries said. “It’s probably getting to the point of no return, where you can’t really be losing games in the first round. I don’t really have to win the night, I just have to keep winning that first game and maybe win one night at least.”
Mardle added that Humphries punished himself too much in Manchester, berating himself after missed trebles, but that it’s not time to “push the panic button” as his fate is still in his hands.
Gerwyn Price, who produced averages over 100 against Van Gerwen, Bunting and Van Veen to win in Manchester, is targeting the top of the table. Price, who will face Josh Rock in Brighton, said he aims to pick up two points every week and believes everyone still has a chance in the competition.
Night 10 — The Brighton Centre, Thursday April 9
Quarter-Finals:
– Luke Humphries vs Jonny Clayton
– Gerwyn Price vs Josh Rock
– Luke Littler vs Stephen Bunting
– Michael van Gerwen vs Gian van Veen
Ranking points are awarded per night (5 to the winner, 3 to the runner-up, 2 to semi-finalists) to form the league table. The top four progress to Finals Night at The O2 in London on Thursday May 28.