World Darts Championship finalist Gian van Veen has alleged that he cares 'little' about what Luke Littler thinks of him following their tense exchange during the Premier League Darts in Manchester on Thursday.
Van Veen missed a match dart in the deciding leg of their quarter-final match before turning to find Littler celebrating in front of the home crowd, with the world champion then gesturing angrily at his opponent as he turned back to the oche.
Littler then missed his chance to throw for the match and Van Veen did not allow him another visit as he wrapped up the quarter-final win - but not before Littler made a crying gesture to the crowd and then exchanged a brief handshake with his rival.
Van Veen, who lost his fourth nightly final of the campaign to Josh Rock, said after his opening win that Littler was a "bad loser" and that his conduct on the oche was "out of order".
On Thursday evening, 19-year-old Littler shared an image of Van Veen's comments on his Instagram stories, adding three laughing emojis below.
Speaking to Swedish streaming service Viaplay about the incident, Van Veen said: "No, we haven't spoken.
"He hasn't approached me either. I saw his reaction on social media. He thought it was funny.
"Well, I don't think things will be very friendly between us anytime soon.
"I'm here for myself. He's a fantastic darter, the world No 1, so what he does for the sport is great, but I care little about what he thinks of me."
The pair will not face each other in the European Tour event held in Munich this weekend as Littler has not entered.
World No 3 Van Veen returns to action during Sunday's second round against either William O'Connor or Sebastian Bialecki.
Littler had surged to the top of the standings with back-to-back victories in Dublin and Berlin, and was the big favourite on home soil at the AO Arena, but the 19-year-old's hopes of claiming a third straight Premier League win were ended prematurely by Van Veen.
Littler, who is a big Manchester United fan and hails from nearby Warrington, failed to hit top form against Van Veen, who had not won a match since week four in the Premier League and is still recovering from the kidney stones that forced him to sit out Dublin.
But Van Veen served notice of his intent as he cruised into a 4-1 lead. Littler recovered to 4-3 and it appeared Van Veen's chance might have gone when he failed to land a double for the match at 5-3, and back came the world champion to level.
The nerves were clear for Van Veen, who fluffed his lines going for double 15, prompting needle between the pair. Van Veen then took advantage of Littler missing a match dart at double seven, with the loser quickly exiting the stage.
The BetMGM Premier League season continues with Night 10 in Brighton next Thursday, as Michael van Gerwen takes on Van Veen in an all-Dutch showdown.
Luke Humphries and Jonny Clayton go head-to-head in the evening's opener, Gerwyn Price faces Josh Rock, while Littler and Stephen Bunting lock horns in the quarter-finals.
Ranking points are awarded per night - with five to the winner, three to the runner-up and two to the semi-finalists - to form the league table from which the top four players will progress to Finals Night at The O2 in London on May 28.
Who will win this year's Premier League Darts? Luke Humphries will be defending his title and you can watch the action every single Thursday until May on Your Site. .
