Phil Taylor sends message to Luke Littler after teen snubbed from England World Cup team

Luke Littler, the rising star of darts, will be absent from the World Cup of Darts in Frankfurt this week - as the teams are determined by the PDC Order of Merit.

World champion Luke Humphries and Michael Smith, who are ranked No. 1 and No. 3 globally, will represent England in the four-day tournament where 40 countries will compete for the £80,000 winner's prize.

Despite being the most sought-after player on the darts circuit following his magical journey to the World Championship final at Alexandra Palace six months ago, 17-year-old Littler was never expected to participate.

Currently sitting at No. 25 in the PDC rankings, 'Luke the Nuke' didn't fail to qualify for the World Cup - he simply wasn't in contention.

Even though he clinched the Premier League Darts title last month, his £315,000 prize money did not boost his position on the order of merit ladder as it is an invitational tournament outside the ranking system.

In the absence of Littler, top seeds England are tipped to secure their fifth World Cup of Darts - and their first since Phil Taylor and Adrian Lewis clinched it four times between 2012-16.

But Taylor has insisted that no one needs to be "worried" about Littler's absence in Germany. " Don't worry about Luke - his time will come to play at the World Cup," he said. People forget it's only his first season as a professional.

“I’m surprised we haven’t won it since Adrian and I were England’s double act. “I always loved playing at the World Cup because on the PDC circuit it’s every man for himself and last man standing takes home the loot. But this is a chance to represent your country, and a lot of people don’t realise how much it means to stand top there in an England shirt.‌

“It used to bring out the patriot in me and it was always great fun playing with Aidy. Maybe it was partly because we come from the same city, Stoke-on-Trent, that we got along so well, but in 2013 even we couldn’t match the Belgians for team spirit even if we beat them 3-1 in the final — because their team was from the same family, Kim and Ronny Huybrechts. But it’s a good format, singles and doubles, and I loved playing for England."

Top seeds England, Scotland, Wales and the Netherlands go straight into Saturday's knockout phase in the second round. The other 36 nations must qualify as winners of their groups.

Gerwyn Price and Jonny Clayton are the holders after winning Wales' second World Cup of Darts 12 months ago. Price will not defend his crown, however, after pulling out due to medical reasons.