Phil Taylor has warned Luke Littler to brace for a raucous reception when the young world champion plays in Rotterdam on Thursday evening. The 16-time world champion believes Littler should expect a rough night at Ahoy, telling The Sun: "Get some earplugs!" Taylor attributes the anticipated hostility to the commotion around Littler in Premier League Darts earlier this month, after the Englishman made negative headlines for his behavior during a defeat to Gian van Veen in Manchester. The incident went viral on social media and appears to have turned public opinion against him.
Despite the expected frosty reception, Taylor has no doubt that Littler is mentally tough enough to handle it. "I think Luke's tough enough to ride it out," Taylor said. "The only way with fans is you've got to perform on stage." The darts legend even suggested Littler might use the situation as extra motivation, adding: "If he performs like he can, he'll get them back. This week, he's in Rotterdam. Maybe he'll go over there, play the first match and think 'sod it, I'll qualify anyway (for the finals)'. Because that might be his plan."
Taylor expects the charged atmosphere to continue beyond Rotterdam. Littler then plays in Liverpool, where his support for Manchester United will likely earn him little sympathy, before the Premier League roadshow moves to Aberdeen. "Next week, he's got Liverpool. Obviously he's a Man Utd fan, so he's got to have a little bit of stick there. And then after that, he goes to Scotland. So, he's going to get it up there as well," Taylor said. Beyond the arena, Taylor advised Littler to stay off social media, stating: "I don't really do social media. It gets done for me. But if I was to advise Luke I'd say keep off social media. Don't put anything on. Don't do it. Don't rise to it. Leave it alone."
Speaking from experience, Taylor recalled facing hostile crowds himself, notably during a PDC World Championship semi-final against Eric Bristow at Purfleet when he had double vision. "My heart was pounding that fast. I don't know how many people were there, say 900 people. I had 899 booing me. One person cheering me on, who daren't say anything," he said. When asked if he ever felt intimidated, Taylor responded: "Did I ever feel intimidated? Thousands of times, yeah. But you have to just ride through it. You've got no choice. You're up there to make a living." He summed up the mental strain by saying: "The stage can be the best place in the world and also it can be the loneliest, cruellest place in the world." The next chapter for Littler begins Thursday in Rotterdam with a quarterfinal clash against Gerwyn Price in what Taylor describes as a cauldron-like Ahoy.
