14 March 2024 , 21:12
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Michael van Gerwen has been slammed by darts fans after hitting out at a Sky Sports reporter over what he felt was a "stupid question".
Van Gerwen has not been at his best in recent weeks and had lost four successive matches heading into night seven of the Premier League in Nottingham.
The Dutchman crashed out of the European Tour to out-of-form Peter Wright on Saturday - days after losing to Rob Cross in Brighton. That followed a shock first-round defeat to Mensur Suljovic at the UK Open and a loss against Luke Humphries on night five of the Premier League.
And ahead of his quarter-final defeat by Luke Littler - who won 6-2 on Thursday night - Van Gerwen was asked by Sky Sports reporter Abigail Davies about his form and returning to winning ways. But it's safe to say the 34-year-old was less than impressed with the question.
When quizzed on if his game is where it needs to be to beat Littler, Van Gerwen replied furiously: "What is that for a stupid question? Of course it's not where it should be. That is the way darts goes sometimes. Last two weeks I have not performed well enough and I need to make sure I get back to winning ways."
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Darts fans criticised Van Gerwen for his comment made to the reporter. One said: "Van Gerwen acting the k*** in the interview there." Another added: "If Michael Van Gerwen spoke to me the way he just spoke to Polly I'd have kicked him." A third said: "I honestly thought I misheard him!!!"
Meanwhile, Littler went into the last eight clash off the back of winning the European Tour on Sunday. The 17-year-old squeezed past Cross in the final and collected £30,000 prize money in the process.
Asked about his success in Belgium, the teenager admitted: "Overall it was a good weekend, it was a job done. Obviously to hit the nine [darter] and get over the line, that is the Euro Tour ticket off the bucket list."
Michael van Gerwen before his game against Luke Littler on Thursday (Getty Images)As for the game itself, Littler won the first leg against the throw, having hit an early 180 before just missing out on a whopping 167 checkout. Van Gerwen broke straight back to level it up, but Littler broke again following a terrible error from the Dutchman to reclaim the lead.
Van Gerwen then missed tops to make it 2-2, but capitalised on Littler missing three darts at double eight. Astonishingly, Littler broke for a third time to make it 3-2 and went on to win four successive legs - almost hitting a nine-darter on the way - to thrash Van Gerwen and seal his place in the semi-final.
As for Van Gerwen, it's his fifth consecutive defeat and he is truly struggling for form after winning three Premier League nights on the bounce towards the beginning of the competition.
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