Phil Taylor has revealed the 'heartbreaking' reason why he can no longer play darts amid his official retirement from the sport.
Taylor is the most successful player in the history of the sport, winning a record-breaking 16 world championship titles between 1990 and 2016.
'The Power' won a staggering 214 professional tournaments over his career across spells in the BDO and PDC.
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And it was perhaps fitting that his final match as a pro was the 2018 World Darts Championship final, when Taylor was 57.
After stepping away from the PDC following that 7-2 defeat to Rob Cross, Taylor continued to play in exhibitions and World Seniors events, but stepped back from the sport last summer in order to undergo hip replacement surgery.
Taylor told SPORTbible in February that he was no longer playing darts, and he even no longer had a set of darts in his home.
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And earlier this week, 'The Power' officially announced that he had retired from competitive darts.
In a statement, he wrote: "As one chapter closes, another one opens. This transition opens up new opportunities for me to explore and engage with the sport in different ways.
"I look forward to meeting fans old and new around the country and I will continue to update the website with future announcements. Please stay tuned for upcoming events, appearances and projects that I am excited to undertake."
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His announcement was not a significant shock to darts fans, given Taylor's age and comments he had made to Online Darts about his health during his last 12 months of playing,
He explained: "The worst pain I ever had was in the last 12 months. it has been a nightmare, honestly.
"Playing wise, I was okay. But when you've been practicing for a few hours and then you play the game, you get a really bad ache in your hip.
"It's like having toothache, it drives you crackers. I couldn't carry on anymore, it was too hard for me.
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"It breaks your heart, don't get me wrong. But it was time."
Topics: Darts, World Darts Championship
Ryan Smart