17-year-old sensation Littler has been a breath of fresh air since bursting onto the scene last year.
The teenager from Warrington powered to the final of last year’s competition but was left disappointed by world number one Luke Humphries.
Littler revealed how his choice of darts allow him more chances of hitting a maximum score of 180.
Speaking in a video posted on TikTok last month, Littler said: “I have a longer point because when my darts sit in the board.
“There’s more room of getting a 180 or a 140, whereas if you’ve got small points they’ll go through the board and then it’s harder to get a 180.”
During his semi-final on Thursday night, Littler managed to hit 13 180s as he battered Stephen Bunting 6-1 to reach the final. Van Gerwen sealed his place in Friday night’s showpiece with a 6-1 win over Chris Dobey.
Speaking after the match, Littler said: “It’s been an amazing tournament so far. People would say I was looking at the title throughout the tournament. After the first game against Ryan Meikle, I have just beat what was in front of me.
“I’ve played a lot better. I’ve won plenty of titles leading up to this. That’s what we do. There are majors all year around and I can’t wait for tomorrow night.”
Ahead of the much-anticipated encounter, former world champion John Part has tipped Littler to clinch the title.
He said: “It was similar to his quarter-final. A really good start to the match and he outplayed Bunting.
“Littler looks every bit favourite of the final and that won’t change based on what we saw tonight.”