Luke Littler produced a classy gesture in the closing stages of his Premier League Darts defeat to Michael van Gerwen.
The opening night of the 17-week tournament saw the pair go head-to-head in a repeat of last month’s World Championship final.
Littler got the better of the Dutchman at Alexandra Palace but Van Gerwen was in no mood to concede back-to-back losses to the teenage star.
MVG edged past Littler in front of a raucous crowd in Belfast, winning 6-5 to open up an early points advantage over the 18-year-old.
It was far from plain sailing for the three-time world champion despite going 5-3 up in the first to six contest.
Littler bravely fought back by winning the next two legs to set up a thrilling finale. But Van Gerwen kept his cool on a nervy double eight to book his place in the next round.
Van Gerwen was forced to overcome a partisan crowd with boos reigning down on the SSE Arena as he closed in on victory.
The crowd were only too happy to show their vocal support for Littler but the teenager was less than impressed by their attempts to derail Van Gerwen.
Littler was seen instructing the crowd to stop the jeers by raising his hand and wagging his finger.
It was all the more impressive considering Van Gerwen had recently slammed Littler for arriving late to a Premier League Darts photoshoot.
Asked about the hold up, Van Gerwen said: “45 minutes late, you mean? They need to stop treating him as a baby, yeah? He’s not a baby any more. He’s 18 years old now.
“It happens. He has to learn but he needs to learn the hard way. It’s a professional sport so you have to be responsible for your actions as well, simple as that.
GettyLittler gave a classy gesture to the crowd as Van Gerwen was closing in on victory[/caption]
“If he turns up late for an interview, I don’t really mind, but now seven other people are waiting for him. That’s not really nice, is it?”
Littler appeared to agree with the Dutchman, replying: “I always let my darts do the talking. But he [Van Gerwen] is not wrong. I was late. I’m 18 now and I’m responsible for my actions and I did get a little telling off.”
Meanwhile, the opening night of Premier League darts failed to disappoint with Chris Dobey edging past Gerwyn Price, Rob Cross seeing off Stephen Bunting while Luke Humphries came through his clash with Nathan Aspinall in the quarter-finals.
The last four saw Dobey down Cross and Humphries fight back to beat Van Gerwen.
It was the 2024 world champion Humphries who reigned supreme in Belfast as he eased to a 6-1 win in the final to win night one.