Luke Littler behaviour called out by Michael van Gerwen's darts friend after losing cool

Luke Littler has been advised to learn from his reaction to the crowd ahead of the next Premier League Darts night. The 18-year-old saw victory elude him against Michael van Gerwen last week after he was seemingly affected by the Liverpool crowd.

quickly took a 4-0 lead before seven-time world champion Van Gerwen mounted an unexpected comeback. As the momentum shifted against the reigning champion, Littler was booed in Merseyside as Van Gerwen clinched six of the final seven legs to secure a 6-5 win. Being a Manchester United fan, Littler had expected a hostile reception. However, he appeared frustrated, and ex-darts player Vincent van der Voort has criticised his response to the crowd.

"Sure, you can provoke the crowd, but you have to be able to take it when it comes back at you," Van der Voort commented on Littler during the . "He's still young and needs to learn how to cope with this.

"You don't need to provoke or respond to the crowd. I've never seen him like that before - he usually comes across as so calm, like nothing fazes him. This was a completely different side.

"For the guy in the crowd, this was probably the highlight of his night," Van der Voort added. "Imagine you're a Liverpool fan and you managed to get under Littler's skin. He was up 4-0 and still lost 6-5. That's a dream scenario for them."

With 30 points to his name, having triumphed in four of the 12 nights, Littler remains top of the Premier League standings. The competition resumes tonight in Birmingham with the 13th night at the Utilita Arena, where Littler will take on Stephen Bunting in the opening round. The two have clashed on four occasions already this year, including Littler's crushing 6-1 win in the World Championship semi-finals.

The teenager secured victories in their first two Premier League meetings, only for Bunting to edge to a 5-5 draw in Rotterdam last month. Speaking ahead of their impending showdown, Bunting highlighted the unorthodox tactics Littler often employs during pre-match warm-ups, which have the potential to unsettle his opponents.

"I think he's probably the one with the mind games, to be fair. Although I'm probably the one with the experience," Bunting told . "He's doing things in the practice room that we're taught not to do. So, he very rarely picks the darts up in the practice room, very strange.

"He'll be sat on his phone either watching Man United or playing a Formula 1 game on his phone. And I'll be on the practice board for four hours. Then he'll get up, he'll throw for bull, and then he'll get on stage and average 110. And you're like: 'How are you doing that?' So, it's incredible."