The 16-year-old darts sensation hit the headlines as he reached the final of the World Championships earlier this month.
His remarkable run was rewarded with a spot in the Darts Premier League for the new season.
And he made his hotly-anticipated World Series of Darts debut on Thursday in front of more than 1,000 people at the Bahrain Darts Masters.
Milburn wasn't seen as Littler made his way out onto the stage, with dozens of people reaching out to cheer on the teenager.
Eloise Milburn watched Luke Littler's win from home
But Littler's 21-year-old girlfriend revealed on social media later that she wasn't in attendance for her boyfriend's World Series of Darts debut.
Littler had to come from behind to beat Man-Lok Leung with Milburn posting a still of the World Championship runner-up embracing his opponent after the victory on her Instagram story.
And she showed her support for Littler by writing: "Get in there!
"Gutted I couldn't be there in person to watch!"
Littler admitted earlier this week that he hadn't thrown a dart since losing the World Championship final.
And that showed in the early stages of his match as Leung raced to a 2-0 lead.
But Littler soon found the kind of form he showed at Alexandra Palace, hitting checkouts of 151, 136 and 120 to progress.
He said: “I’m just happy to get over the line.
“I’ve always said to myself it takes a leg or two to get into the game. You could see that it did.
“I got the next five legs with two ton-pluses. It always take a leg or two to get into it.
“Was there a little bit of rust? Yeah. I’ve not had a proper game, a professional game, since the World Championship final.
Luke Littler had to come back from 2-0 down
ITV
“I was thinking, I am 2-0 down, whatever happens, happens.
“But I’ll always fight until the end. Once I got a leg or two, I was in.
“A big finish always helps. When you lose the throw and then he breaks you, and you’re 2-0 down, it’s a bit different. I’m glad I got into the game and got over the line.”
LATEST SPORT NEWS:
🎯👏 An impressive debut for Luke Littler at #BahrainDarts24 pic.twitter.com/LaTKePWfQB
— ITV Sport (@ITVSport) January 18, 2024
His win puts Littler into the quarter-final stage, where he will face Nathan Aspinall.
Littler added: “We practised together before the world championship.
“We both know each other’s game. We bought played set-play. But it’s the first to six legs, straight legs, no breaks.
“It will be good for our management to see us both play. I cannot wait."
You may like
