Luke Littler has opened up on the prospect of retiring from darts after taking a second job away from the oche. The teenager is unquestionably the best player on the planet, having won back-to-back World Darts Championship titles over the last two years. If he keeps winning at the same rate, he could threaten Phil Taylor’s long-standing records in decades to come.

However, much will depend on whether the 19-year-old remains active in the sport. Taylor dominated across three decades and it remains to be seen if Littler will stay motivated enough to prolong his career into middle age. While he is showing no sign of stepping away from darts just yet, he has admitted that he could move on when the ‘fire’ is no longer there.

Speaking ahead of night nine of the Premier League in Manchester, he said: “That’s down to me. Whether I still want it in 10 or 15 years, whether I’ve achieved everything I want. The goal is to win every major, multiple times.”

Littler went on to echo an eight-word message relayed by Michael van Gerwen, saying: “Like Michael says: when the fire goes, that’s when you stop.”

For now, though, he is not short of motivation and wants to dominate the sport for many years to come. Littler’s resilience has become a defining trait, helping him to win matches from seemingly insurmountable positions.

Just last month, he came back from five legs down against Gerwyn Price to claim a 6-5 victory on night seven of the Premier League in Dublin.

“I don’t think I’m ever out of a game,” he explained. “Against Gezzy, going 5-0 down and winning showed that. At 5-3 I said to myself: ‘I’ve got him’. You could see him starting to miss.

“Sometimes it feels like I’m 1-0 or 2-0 up before I even get on stage. Some players treat it like their final when they play me. It’s belief in yourself and your ability. I don’t think I’m ever beaten in a game.”

Even though he has no plans to retire from darts any time soon, Littler is already thinking about other ways to boost his bank balance.

He recently set up a company to make money from his sports card collection as he looks to turn his passion into a lucrative new business.

Littler made a slow start to this year’s Premier League campaign, struggling in the early weeks of the competition before reaching his first final on night five in Cardiff.

He has since recovered his form to lead the table and is firmly fixated on winning the trophy for a second time in three attempts.

“That’s darts, it’s a crazy sport,” he said. “You win some, you lose some. You have bad moments and better ones. A few weeks didn’t go to plan, but just look where I am now.

“I don’t think there’s any need to worry once you’re on stage. I just enjoy it, thrive off the fans and the atmosphere. As long as I’m playing my best, there’s nothing to worry about.”