Michael van Gerwen and Luke Littler look set for a collision course in the World Darts Championship final and the Dutchman has begun his mind games.
Mighty Mike continued his impressive tournament so far with a 4-2 victory over Jeffrey De Graaf, while Luke Littler squeezed through his last 16 tie 4-3 against Ryan Joyce.
Littler and Michael van Gerwen will meet in the final of the Alexandra Palace tournament should they both get there and the Dutchman has sent a message to the 17-year-old.
Michael van Gerwen calls Luke Littler ‘biggest disappointment’
After van Gerwen set up a quarterfinal clash with Callan Rydz, he used his press conference to try and get into Littler’s head.
Mighty Mike boldly claimed Littler’s performances so far at the World Darts Championship have left him cold.
The Dutchman said: “I think the biggest disappointment so far is Luke Littler. A lot of people are expecting a lot of him, that’s the reason why he is not 100 percent.”
The Nuke has hit averages of over 100 in two out of three of his matches so far at Ally Pally, including the third-highest average of the tournament against Joyce.
van Gerwen hit his first 100+ average in his victory over De Graaf in the last 16.
van Gerwen looks ahead to Callan Rydz test
The Dutchman plays one of the players of the tournament so far in Rydz in the final eight, but van Gerwyn is confident ahead of his toughest test yet.
Speaking at his press conference, van Gerwyn said: “I think he’s got the highest tournament average so far, so you can’t underestimate him.
“I think he’s playing some fantastic darts, but we’re going to see. It’s going to be first to five sets, it’s a totally different game.”
“When I play well, I don’t panic. When I keep focus, when I keep believing in my own ability, anything is possible. I’m not here for the jolly, I’m here to win a tournament, and we all know that.”
van Gerwyn plays Rydz in the afternoon session on New Year’s Day.