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Luke Littler swaps management; loses at Players Championship 31

Luke Littler will be represented by Target Darts on and off the oche after the teenage world champion completed an overhaul of his management.

Littler parted company with Martin Foulds' ZXF Sports a week ago after stating he would go it alone with help from his family but he has now signed with the darts manufacturer with whom he has worked since the age of 12.

"Target has been part of my career from the very beginning and I've always had a great relationship with everyone there," Littler said.

"I'm really happy to have their backing as I continue to focus on my game and prepare for the big tournaments ahead."

Littler continued his domination of the game by beating rival Luke Humphries in the final of the World Grand Prix on Sunday.

It was the 18-year-old's fourth major title of the year following his successes at the World Championship, UK Open and World Matchplay.

However, Littler saw his winning run brought to a halt as he was edged out by Beau Greaves in a last-leg decider in the semi-finals of the PDC World Youth Championship in Wigan on Monday.

Littler loses again as world No. 1 hopes dented

Earlier on Tuesday, Littler fell to a second defeat in the space of 24 hours as he was beaten in his first-round ProTour match by world No. 26 Ritchie Edhouse.

Edhouse represented a tough-looking opening-round draw for Littler and so it proved as the 18-year-old's 106.45 proved insufficient for victory in Wigan.

The defeat made Littler's task of overhauling Luke Humphries at the top of the rankings before December's World Championship more difficult as he resides outside of the qualification places for next month's Players Championship finals with only three events left to play.

If Littler were to miss the event, he would miss out on a sizeable chunk of potential prize money that would help him leapfrog Humphries in the rankings.

- Littler eyes Humphries' No. 1 darts ranking after World Grand Prix win

"The Nuke" was ranked 70th in the Players Championship Order of Merit before play began in Wigan -- the top 64 qualify for the finals in Minehead -- as he has opted not to play in a number of events this year.

Littler was stunned by 21-year-old Beau Greaves on Monday -- the day after he triumphed over Luke Humphries in the World Grand Prix final. The win booked Greaves' spot in the final of the World Youth Championship where she will face defending champion Gian van Veen.

Information from PA contributed to this report.