When idols become your rivals.
Teenage sensation Luke Littler has become, arguably, the most beloved sportsman in darts, unless you ask Raymond van Barneveld.
Born in 2007, Littler was not even alive when van Barneveld won the last of his five titles.
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Back in December, the Warrington-born lad breezed past his hero in a 4-1 win to reach the last eight.
“It’s incredible beating one of my idols on the biggest stage of all, I still can’t believe it," he said at the time.
“He is a true gentlemen. I respect Raymond very well," Littler added.
“Raymond was incredible. It was incredible to see his iconic walk-on, I am so glad I got the job done. It wasn’t easy.”
After his win over the 56-year-old, footage of Littler as a toddler went viral as he pretended to play as van Barneveld in his living room.
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However, the Dutchman has since suggested that the 17-year-old 'f*** off' following his Belgian Darts Open win.
Speaking about 'The Nuke' with Dutch outlet Sportnieuws, he said: "So that's the weird thing about it. I understood then that I am his example.
"That at the World Championship you don't chat I can understand, but other tournaments... The other day I walked up to him to shake his hand.
"Then he took out his earplug for a moment and only said the most necessary thing.
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"To that he responded: yes, I only respond to text messages. WhatsApp I'm actually not on.
"Well fine, I sent a text message: congratulations with Wieze. And then nothing. Fine.
"Then I'm also a bit done with it. The next time I get asked if I want to do something for him, I'll pass."
"I understand that you get thousands of text messages but of course I'm not just anyone," he continued.
"If I've been your inspiration for years, I also expect a text message back."
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Laughing, van Barneveld added: "Dude's on his phone all day, f*** off.
"This guy is so brilliantly good. He doesn't worry about anything. He's playing at seventeen like he's been doing this for years."
This comes after the Professional Darts Corporation said Littler will miss the upcoming Nordic Darts Masters due to family commitments and won't be attending the tournament in Copenhagen on June 7-8.
As a result, newly crowned UK Open champion Dimitri Van den Bergh will take his place.
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Matt Porter, Professional Darts Corporation chief executive, has said Littler's busy schedule is being monitored daily.
Speaking on the Love The Darts podcast, he explained: “The media demands are high, still getting a lot of requests for high-end content.
"We saw him on The Jonathan Ross Show, he's doing Comic Relief, there are a lot of A-list people that want to speak to Luke which is great for him and great for darts and it's important that is managed properly.
“His manager Martin (Foulds) is excellent, his family are very supportive, we're involved and it's a team effort really just to make sure everything is geared around giving him the optimal opportunity to be the best he can on the oche and just get enough rest and time to himself to be a normal 17-year-old as best he can away from that.
“It's early days, it's hard to think we're only three months into the Luke Littler story but who knows how long it might last?”
Topics: Luke Littler, Sport, UK News
Anish Vij