“I’m sure he’s crying in his Bentley right now” – Chris Mason jokes about Luke Littler’s provoked outburst at the crowd

According to several former pros, Luke Littler shouldn’t pay any attention to the criticism he received after his striking words to the crowd at Alexandra Palace. The 18-year-old world champion hit out after his win over Rob Cross in the fourth round of the PDC World Darts Championship at the spectators who booed him during the match, but he is receiving support from some former players.

During the match against Cross, the Ally Pally crowd overwhelmingly backed the 2018 world champion. Littler, the defending champion and world number one, was met with boos and whistles, especially once it became clear a deciding seventh set was off the table. Afterwards, he made his feelings known to Sky Sports.

“I'm not bothered. Really not bothered,” Littler said immediately after his 4-2 win. “You guys pay for tickets and you pay for my prize so thanks for booing me." He added: "No-one wanted me to win but I proved them wrong yet again."

The remarks sparked plenty of debate. Littler reiterated his stance later on talkSPORT, though he also admitted he had been carried away by emotion on stage. Nonetheless, there is understanding, and even support, from within the darts community for his response.

Paul Nicholson, a former major winner and now analyst, sees no reason to come down hard on Littler. “I'm not sure he's made a mistake," Nicholson said on the talkSPORT Darts YouTube channel. I think we've all said something in the heat of the moment that we might regret. But at the same time, I don't think he regrets it."

According to Nicholson, there was more at play during the match than just the crowd. He saw how Cross tried to disrupt Littler’s rhythm. “Rob Cross tried to control the pace. It didn’t work. He tried to be a bit more animated than usual. He was trying to play the semi-final from 2017 again from Van Gerwen. It didn't work."

As the match went on, the dynamic shifted. towards the end of the game, he just played darts and he didn't show the celebrations anymore, especially when he won another set. It was a case of, I'm going to try this against him. That didn't work either. Nothing works,” said Nicholson, who stressed that Littler was simply the better player.

Chris Mason, a former BDO World Championship semi-finalist, also defended the young Englishman. He felt the crowd’s behavior was understandable, but not necessarily fair. “I think because Rob Cross produced something of a comeback, they wanted it to go all the way," Mason analysed.

At the same time, he voiced his frustration with a recurring issue in darts. “This is the one element of the sport which grates with me. It should be the best player, not who has the most support. Having support is massive and massively helpful. We've seen that many times here. But then the negative of that is that those same people will put you off by whistling and booing and screaming and shouting."

Mason felt Littler remained notably composed. “I thought he dealt with it very well. It's about time a player stood up and said, you know what, you crack on lads." With a wink, he added: “I’m sure he’s crying in his Bentley right now.”

Mason also pointed to Littler’s age and status. “We've got to remember. He's an 18-year-old boy who's been put on this pedestal. Most 18-year-olds are sat in their mum's box room writing nonsense about him. He's up there earning millions of quid. Why can't he say what he wants?”