Two-time darts world champion, 40, reveals he is at ‘crossroads' in major retirement hint
Two-times World Champion Lewis has been competing at exhibition events throughout the UK this year.
3
But the Stoke-on-Trent thrower has been absent from competitive action for over 26 months.
"Jackpot" had previously stepped away from the oche due to the stress of the game and to care for his ill wife Sarah.
He told the Tops and Tales podcast: 'Sarah's got an incurable kidney disease, so we obviously spent a lot of time in hospital.
'My daughter, she's got autism and ADHD, so she's got them both combined. So, she's on disability.
'So, and all that like, like I said, she's at our level, our level needs. But yeah, she's still a diamond like, you know.'
The 40-year-old is currently unable to compete in PDC events after his Tour Card expired at the end of 2024.
Four-times major winner Lewis insists there's no chance of a half-hearted return to the big stage as he weighs up his next move carefully.
Lewis added: 'I mean, we'll see where January takes us in regards to going back to professional darts.
JOIN SUN VEGAS: GET £50 BONUS
3
'You know, obviously, I'll never write it off and say I'm, you know, I never go back to the PDC because that would be my aim again.
'But I wouldn't turn up there, say I won my Tour Card back and then after six months, say no, I wasn't ready for it.
'I want to make sure I'm 100 per cent ready, mentally right and just go at it all guns blazing.
'I feel, I mean, I haven't really said anything to anybody else really. I feel as if like it's a crossroads. Do you know what I mean?"
List of all-time Darts World Champions
BELOW is a list of darts world champions by year.
The list does not include winners from the pre-Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) era or BDO world champions.
That means Raymond van Barneveld, for example, is only listed once - Barney also won four BDO titles - and none of Eric Bristow's five BDO titles are included.
1994 - Dennis Priestley
1995 - Phil Taylor
1996 - Phil Taylor (2)
1997 - Phil Taylor (3)
1998 - Phil Taylor (4)
1999 - Phil Taylor (5)
2000 - Phil Taylor (6)
2001 - Phil Taylor (7)
2002 - Phil Taylor (8)
2003 - John Part
2004 - Phil Taylor (9)
2005 - Phil Taylor (10)
2006 - Phil Taylor (11)
2007 - Raymond van Barneveld
2008 - John Part (2)
2009 - Phil Taylor (12)
2010 - Phil Taylor (13)
2011 - Adrian Lewis
2012 - Adrian Lewis (2)
2013 - Phil Taylor (14)
2014 - Michael van Gerwen
2015 - Gary Anderson
2016 - Gary Anderson (2)
2017 - Michael van Gerwen (2)
2018 - Rob Cross
2019 - Michael van Gerwen (3)
2020 - Peter Wright
2021 - Gerwyn Price
2022 - Peter Wright (2)
2023 - Michael Smith
2024 - Luke Humphries
2025 - Luke Littler
Most World Titles
14 - Phil Taylor
3 - Michael van Gerwen
2 - John Part, Adrian Lewis, Gary Anderson, Peter Wright
1 - Dennis Priestley, Raymond van Barneveld, Rob Cross, Gerwyn Price, Michael Smith, Luke Humphries, Luke Littler
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Metro
27 minutes ago
- Metro
Inside England captain Leah Williamson's romance with Miss USA winner Elle Smith
England captain Leah Williamson will be leading the Lionesses to hopeful victory in the Women's Euro 2025 finals tonight. Leah's England will take on former rivals Spain in St Jakob-Park in Basel, Switzerland, two years after losing out on their World Cup attempt. All eyes will be on the England team, including 29-year-old team captain Leah, who was permanently appointed to the post by England manager Sarina Wiegman in 2022. But what do we know about Leah's life away from the pitch? Does she have a girlfriend or partner? When not leading her team to victory, Leah has made headlines for her rumoured romance with former Miss USA Elle Smith. Here's all we know about Leah Williamson's relationship with the 27-year-old beauty pageant winner. American journalist and beauty pageant contestant Elle Smith was crowned Miss USA in 2021. In the run-up to the competition, she was named Miss Kentucky USA that same year, making her only the second woman from Kentucky to win Miss USA. She went on to represent the United States at Miss Universe, ultimately finishing in the Top 10, losing out to India's Harnaaz Sandhu. Although they became romantically linked in 2024, Leah and Elle have not officially confirmed whether they are in a relationship. Speculation that the pair were 'soft-launching' a relationship began in March, when Elle posted a video of her and Leah floating in the ocean together on a paddleboard. This came accompanied by the caption 'happy birthday my love x,' to which Leah responded with a series of emojis. Since then, they have continued to pop up all over each other's social media, including a picture of them celebrating England's 6-0 win against Portugal, back in May. In the black-and-white picture, Leah sits on Elle's lap, with the former Miss USA titleholder's arms around her. In response to the picture, Leah commented: 'We did it🥹🥹🥹' Last month, Elle shared a series of snapshots from their holiday to Majorca together – many of which saw the pair looking very loved-up indeed. These images included a snap of Elle and Leah on a paddleboard together, as well as shots of them all dressed up and headed out for dinner. Leah shared her own carousel of images on her Instagram page, too, which included a number of grabs of Elle smiling and contented. Leah also showed her appreciation when Elle shared a series of snaps posing in her Skims bikini while on holiday in Jamaica for her birthday last month. 'I have no words,' Leah wrote in the comments to the post – to which Elle responded: 'all yours.' More Trending She then commented again soon afterwards, writing: 'Just come for a second viewing.' Elle has shared a message of support ahead of tonight's final, posting a snap of herself in a t-shirt to her Instagram Stories. This wasn't any old England t-shirt either. The message emblazoned on the white tee's front in red writing? 'Live, Laugh, Leah.' Got a story? If you've got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the entertainment team by emailing us celebtips@ calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we'd love to hear from you. MORE: How much do women footballers get paid? England player salaries revealed MORE: Why are Mary Earps and Millie Bright not playing for England at Euro 2025? MORE: Who is commentating on England's Euro 2025 final vs Spain? BBC and ITV line-ups
The Independent
27 minutes ago
- The Independent
Nervous yet confident: Fans react as England face off against Spain in Euro 2025 final
Nervous England fans gathered at the Boxpark in Shoreditch, London, to witness the Lionesses face Spain in the Euro 2025 final on Sunday (27 July). Fans made their predictions ahead of kick-off on how the match would play out. The Prince of Wales, who is patron of the Football Association (FA), and his daughter Princess Charlotte were among those in the stands in Basel, Switzerland, and led the country in wishing the national team good luck. Supporters gathered in venues across the country to watch the final, waving England flags and singing the national anthem.
The Independent
27 minutes ago
- The Independent
Ben Stokes defies injury to rally England but fourth India Test ends in draw
Ben Stokes' latest injury-defying act failed to inspire England as just a second draw of the Bazball era following stubborn India resistance kept the Rothesay series alive. A troublesome left leg and a fresh problem in his right shoulder failed to deter Stokes, who snared KL Rahul for 90 on the last morning of the fourth Test to give England hope of moving into an unassailable 3-1 series lead. Jofra Archer then dismissed Shubman Gill for 103 on the stroke of lunch but Joe Root dropping Ravindra Jadeja from the next ball proved crucial as he and Washington Sundar batted out the rest of the day. However, there were farcical scenes at the finish when it became clear there would be no winner as India's batters elected against shaking hands with 15 overs left – the earliest opportunity a draw could be agreed – so both could get their hundreds. Root and Harry Brook provided buffet bowling to speed things along, with Jadeja getting to his ton first and and Sundar followed to signal the end of proceedings, with India on 425 for four with a lead of 114. It was unnecessary distraction to what had been a brilliant India rearguard, with England barely acknowledging either century, as the tourists head to the Kia Oval still only trailing 2-1. With the fifth Test getting under way on Thursday, much of the focus will likely centre on Stokes' availability after he was left weary and wounded in Manchester. He battled cramp in his left leg when batting on Friday and reported general soreness on Saturday, which meant he did not bowl as Rahul and Gill took India from nought for two to 174 for two overnight. More fitness problems emerged almost as soon as he started bowling from the Sir James Anderson End, as he grimaced and repeatedly rubbed his right shoulder after sending down the second over of the day. Despite being in visible discomfort, straightening his arm after every delivery in an eight-over spell, Stokes caused problems, with Gill's drive on 81 bursting through a leaping Ollie Pope's hands close in. England burned their final review as the ineffective Liam Dawson erroneously thought Rahul had gloved down the leg-side, but the India opener was lbw as Stokes made the breakthrough with his 20th delivery. With variable bounce in play at Stokes' end, Rahul was beaten by a nip-backer that thudded into his knee roll in front of middle stump, with the England captain immediately celebrating. Gill wore a painful blow to a right hand already heavily bandaged after one leapt off a length and struck him in the glove and helmet but the India captain soldiered on. Having moved on to a titanic 700 runs for the series, Gill brought up a fourth three-figure score of the trip off 228 balls with a push into the offside for a single. By then, England had the second new ball, taken 40 minutes before lunch, and Archer claimed the prize wicket of Gill, who fiddled outside off down the wrong line and feathered through to Jamie Smith. England should have ended the session with a spring in their step but Root parried then dropped the rebound at head height after Jadeja flirted at a rising delivery from Archer first up. Dawson was tidy but nonthreatening at the beginning of the afternoon, with the slow left-armer unable to take advantage of the footholes outside the off-stump of India's left-handed pair. Against an old ball and with the pitch flattening out, Sundar and Jadeja grew increasingly confident. This was evident in the way they went after Stokes in his three-over burst from the Brian Statham End, which culminated in Sundar belting a six then a four and Jadeja cutting away to the boundary to take both batters to fifty and India into the lead. Having conceded 15 from his allotment, Stokes seemed to accept one last moment of magic was beyond him and he hooked himself from the attack – finishing with 11-2-33-1 – to seemingly end England's flickering hopes of victory. It seemed Dawson, who finished with nought for 95 from 47 overs, and Root would administer the last rites after tea but India were in no hurry to get off the field when the match ticked over into the last hour. Both teams must agree on the draw and England were clearly unhappy at Jadeja and Sundar continuing, with Brook eventually called upon to send down some floaty off-spin while Root was kept on. Jadeja got to his hundred in a blizzard of boundaries, eventually finishing on 107 not out, before Washington brought up his first Test century in Brook's next over before hands were shaken five overs after England had first offered them.
