"What works for Phil Taylor doesn't necessarily work for Luke Littler" - Vincent van der Voort not convinced of successful partnership

It was recently revealed that Phil Taylor is open to coaching teenage darting sensation Luke Littler. But Vincent van der Voort is not convinced that this will just be a successful partnership.

Taylor toldTalksport that he is open to working with Littler. But Van der Voort sees the necessary obstacles. "The problem with that kind of forced combination is that both the player and the mentor have to be open to it. Taylor, for example, has to be open to the fact that Littler is his own person, is allowed to make his own mistakes and do his own things. What works for Taylor doesn't necessarily work for Littler," Van der Voort said via the podcast 'Darts Draait Door'.

The 16-time world champion already hinted that he wants to drastically curtail Littler's gaming. "He's still allowed to game for an hour a day?", Van der Voort wonders. "That boy comes from 12 hours a day and then suddenly has to go to 1 hour. I think he does that for two/three days and then says, 'Figure it out.' They have to sense each other and what works. Maybe it doesn't work at all between those two."

Littler reached the final at the World Darts Championship early this year and in his first year on the Pro Tour won the Premier League Darts, two World Series tournaments and also two Euro Tours, among others. "Littler has done it this way every time and it has worked too. It's not exactly bad. Then when someone tells him to do it all differently, it can also work the other way. Taylor has to be open to Littler as well so."

"At floor tournaments, Littler often doesn't feel like it and then he soon thinks it's all for the best," Van der Voort continued. "But he has to force himself to do his best every tournament. That is very difficult and he is not doing that yet. He is still allowed to make those mistakes now, but he has to work on that."