Luke Littler apparently hasn’t yet dared respond to being labelled ‘kebab boy’ by Michael van Gerwen as both players close in on a place in the Premier League Darts play-offs. Neither player was at their best on night 12 in Rotterdam on Thursday as they both fell at the first hurdle, Littler beaten 6-3 by Michael Smith and ‘MVG’ disappointing his home fans by losing 6-4 to Luke Humphries.
With just four events to go before the top four face off at the O2 Arena on May 23 though, Littler lies second, level on points with Humphries, with Van Gerwen in fourth. And despite the evident rivalry between the two generational stars at the oche, they appear to share a good rapport behind the scenes with the teenager greeted with “Hey there, kebab-boy” when he met the three-time world champion in Holland.
And addressing the media before the tournament began, Van Gerwen claimed he regularly addresses Littler with that moniker, ignoring the ‘Nuke’ nickname that has become the youngster’s trademark. “We are always egging each other on, and that’s what I always call him,” he said.
However, when pressed as to whether Littler had his own nickname for him, the Dutchman joked that if the teenager does, he would be too intimidated to say. “I don’t know, but he doesn’t dare say it yet, I think. I’m twice that boy’s age, right?”
Littler’s association with kebabs became infamous during his remarkable run to the PDC World Championship final at Ally Pally over Christmas and New Year. After his opening win over Christian Kist, he revealed he celebrated the success with his favourite take-away and a soft drink, and offers of free kebabs and sponsorship deals duly flooded in.
Littler and Van Gerwen have had their moments this year, with the latter publicly warning the protege that he would have to deal with disappointment on the PDC Tour once his apparent honeymoon period ended. Back in February, with the pair locked at 5-5 during an epic Premier League semi-final in Newcastle, Littler also appeared to ignore an attempted fist-bump from Van Gerwen, instead turning his back ahead of the deciding leg.
But the 34-year-old dismissed any talk of tension, despite conceding their age-gap was noticeable. “We just have a good relationship, but real conversations we haven’t had,” he added.
“I sometimes ask him something, it’s always darts-related. So should I start talking politics with a 17-year-old guy? If you ask him about Manchester United, he knows everything. That’s a generation gap.”
The pair have met eight times on the tour so far this year, with their head-to-head record standing at 4-4. And they are on different sides of the draw when the Premier League heads to Liverpool next Thursday, unable to meet at the M&S Bank Arena until the final.
