Former professional darts player Matt Edgar has identified hostile crowds as the Achilles heel for Luke Littler, describing jeering spectators as the world No 1's "kryptonite" at the oche.
The 19-year-old sensation finds himself languishing in seventh position in the Premier League standings, having secured just a single victory across his first four nights of competition.
Edgar suggests the teenage prodigy is still coming to terms with no longer enjoying universal crowd support, a significant adjustment for a player who burst onto the scene as a fan favourite during his remarkable rise to the top of the rankings.
Littler suffered a comprehensive 6-3 defeat at the hands of Jonny Clayton during last week's Belfast event, a match that exposed his vulnerability when facing an unsympathetic audience.
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Portions of the crowd directed jeers towards the Warrington youngster throughout the contest, and he visibly struggled to maintain his composure under the barrage of negativity.
The 10-time major winner has previous form when it comes to difficulties with antagonistic spectators, having endured a torrid time amid whistles from the Frankfurt crowd when England crashed out of the World Cup against Germany.
Former professional darts player Matt Edgar has identified hostile crowds as the Achilles heel for Luke Littler, describing jeering spectators as the world No 1's "kryptonite" at the oche
|PA
His record in German venues remains notably underwhelming compared to his performances elsewhere.
Speaking to OLBG, Edgar outlined the pattern he has observed in Littler's career trajectory.
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Five things to know about Luke Littler | PA"Look at the evidence with Luke Littler. He doesn't go to Germany and because of that he won't play on the European Tour," he explained.
"He hasn't been successful in places where that has happened. We look at Luke Littler and go, how perfect and unstoppable he is.
"But have we potentially seen his bit of kryptonite here at this moment in his career not able to deal with that interaction, potentially?"
The teenager competed in only one Euro Tour event in Germany last year, reaching the semi-finals at the German Darts Grand Prix, while he has never progressed beyond the second round at the European Championship in Dortmund.
Luke Littler is still waiting for his first Premier League nightly win this season
|PA
Despite acknowledging Littler's sluggish start to the Premier League campaign, Edgar remains adamant the teenager will recover his form in time to secure a place among the top four.
"I don't see a world where he is not in the top four. The story might be different in how we get there," he continued.
"We have already gone slightly different to how we expected it to go for him. Whatever road he goes down, I think all roads lead for him to the O2."
Littler returns to action when the Premier League travels to Cardiff for Night Five on Thursday, where he will look to arrest his current slide.