Darts stars 'scared' of Luke Littler as teen trolls opponent Mike De Decker

Gerwyn Price believes other darts players are 'scared' of playing against Luke Littler before they even take to the stage. The teenager has emerged as the global face of the sport since bursting onto the professional scene two years ago. He has won a huge number of trophies since then but has never prevailed at the World Grand Prix.

Littler will be hoping to put that right over the coming days, having already reached the quarter-finals. He breezed past Gian van Veen in his opening match before knocking out defending champion Mike De Decker. The Nuke, who is yet to drop a set at the tournament, will go up against Price in the last eight.

He will be the overwhelming favourite to win but Price is adamant that he can spring a surprise if he plays his best game. The Welshman has no fear heading into the fixture but has suggested that other players are frightened of facing Littler.

"I don't care who I play," said Price. "I know that if I play my A-game then nine times out of 10 I will win. I think all the other players are scared of him before they even get on the board, like Phil Taylor used to be years ago."

It comes after Littler trolled De Decker by claiming that he was 'bored' during their match, with the Belgian not putting up much of a fight.

He missed 41 doubles in just 11 legs as Littler ran riot, wrapping up a comprehensive victory with a 170 checkout. It ensured that he has made it through to every major quarter-final so far this year.

Speaking afterwards, Littler said: "Mike didn't play his best there and I just had to plod along. It was a bit boring at times because I expected something from the reigning champion and I just had to do a job.

"If my opponent is playing as good as me on the stage I'm obviously going to match it. He's going to match me but Mike just didn't show up there. I'm just happy to get into the next round. The trophy is in sight, just a few games away."

Littler could face a tougher time against Price, with Sky Sports pundit John Part pointing out that self-belief goes a long way in darts.

"Luke will want to maintain the dominance he has established over Price but he will take it dart by dart, leg by leg," he said. "He won't be coming up with trick shots. It will be about getting the job done. I don't think there will be any fooling around.

"He knows what Price can do. Price went down for a period of time but he is playing well now and will believe he can beat Littler."