Luke Littler confronted by opponent and called ‘arrogant’ after Belgium Open win

Ricardo Pietreczko said ‘I hope the arrogance punishes him’ after confronting Littler on stage after the semi-finals

Luke Littler was confronted on stage by an opponent and accused of showing “arrogance” as the 17-year-old won his first European Tour title in Belgium on Sunday.

Littler hit a nine-darter as he won the Belgian Open in Wieze, defeating Rob Cross in the final, but his victory was somewhat overshadowed by the unsavoury scenes that followed his victory over Ricardo Pietreczko in the semi-finals.

The World Championship finalist defeated Pietreczko 7-4, before the German squared up to Littler on stage as the pair exchanged words while shaking hands in a tense moment.

Pietreczko, 29, leaned towards Littler, who appeared to be taken aback by the confrontation.

Pietreczko later said in a post on Instagram: “So I appreciated him a lot, that you can play such a game at such a (young) age, but I hope the arrogance punishes him.”

Littler responded on Twitter by saying: “No idea what I did wrong, no idea what he said, something then don’t do it again.”

Littler defeated former world champion Cross 8-7 in a see-saw battle, as the teenager hit six maximums including a perfect leg to move 6-4 ahead.

Luke Littler won the Belgian Open on Sunday (Getty Images)

Littler, who also hit a nine-darter when winning on his World Series debut, said afterwards: “I’m just glad to get over the line.

“I hit the nine and then lost the next two legs, so I’m just glad to get over the line. It’s always good to be involved in a good game.

“Like Rob said just then, I bring the best out of him and he’s thankful for that, so we always push ourselves to the last leg.”

Cross was full of praise for Littler despite the defeat: “He really pushes on,” Cross said.

“This young man has got such a bright future in front of him. The nine-darter was impeccable, amazing. This boy’s special.”

Includes reporting from PA