Luke Humphries has apologised to fans following his loss to Luke Littler on the opening night of the Premier League.
The world No 1 was beaten 6-2 by the teenager at the Motorpoint Arena in Cardiff on Thursday in a repeat of the World Darts Championship final.
Humphries was the only player able to stop Littler at Alexandra Palace and he was favourite to topple him in Wales.
The pair had met at the Dutch Darts Masters last week, with Littler knocking the 28-year-old out in the quarter-finals.
Luke Humphries has apologised following his loss to Luke Littler
Getty
Humphries has won the last three major tournaments, earning him a spot at the top of the PDC rankings.
But Littler was on top form in their match last night and took advantage of a below-par display from his opponent.
Littler has become a household name since his run at Ally Pally and he had the Welsh crowd on his side.
Humphries was distracted several times by whistling from supporters and turned in anger and shook his head towards the fans.
He had a blank look on his face as he walked off the stage after Littler wrapped up victory with a double 20.
Humphries was clearly unhappy with how he played but was also frustrated at the reaction from the crowd.
He posted a message on his X account, formerly known as Twitter, later in the evening.
Humphries apologised for his performance but also admitted he was 'gutted' with the disruption from the fans.
He wrote: "So sorry tonight guys. Was so looking forward to playing in the amazing city of Cardiff.
"I was gutted with the whistling, but I know that I have to learn to get better at that!
"Well done Luke for a fantastic debut game! I will work hard for the rest of the tournament."
Like Littler, Humphries is participating at his first Premier League after failing to qualify for last year's event.
He will be aiming to get his first win against Peter Wright in Berlin next Thursday.
LATEST SPORTS NEWS:
Luke Humphries was unhappy with his performance against Luke Littler
Getty
Former world champion Michael Smith was the overall winner on the first night, beating Littler in the semi-final before overcoming home favourite Gerwyn Price.
Smith was also on the wrong end of a negative crowd reaction, with whistling heard during his throws.
But afterwards he insisted the majority of the fans in attendance were well behaved.
Smith said: "I enjoyed the crowd apart from one or two individuals. I'm not going to say the crowd was disgusting because it was only two or three people, the other three or four thousand were amazing.
Luke Humphries says he was 'gutted' by the crowd reaction on Thursday
Getty
"Luckily enough it did not put me off, it's expected. You know you're going to expect some stick and some boos, especially playing Gezzy [Price] here.
"Whistling is not the best, but it happens in any sport. How do you stop it? It happens and it's up to the sportsperson to get on with the job.
"Going top of the league after week one is a message to myself. I'm happy to win and there's a few chinks in there, but to get five points on the opening night and a 10 grand cheque is always nice."
