Darts legend Phil Taylor has declared he intends to remain in the sport in a new capacity.
Taylor is considered the greatest player to have ever graced the oche, winning 214 professional tournaments including a record 16 prestigious World Championships.
‘The Power’ retired in 2018 after his final appearance at the Alexandra Palace event, leaving a legacy like no other with his arrows talent never in doubt.
He subsequently made a U-turn four years later to play in the Seniors tour, but he has now stepped down from competing with his last appearance in the World Seniors Championship coming earlier this year.
The Briton will be returning to the Seniors tour, but this time as a commentator, where he will be on the microphone for the World Senior Darts Masters in Sunderland this weekend.
And he has a vision that this could be a new long-term career for himself, providing it doesn’t see him travelling away from his family for extended periods.
He said: “Some of the older players are coming to retirement age now and I think you’ll see an influx of a few more household names which will help the Seniors.
“I’m looking forward to it [commentating], depending on what games they give me!
“If they want younger people [in the future] that’s fine. I’m not too worried about it.
“But I wouldn’t want to be away from home week in week out like I used to be.
“With my experience I can sometimes tell what pressure they’re under and what they’re thinking at that particular time.
“Sometimes you can just tell they’re not going to hit the double.”
Taylor was set to play in the competition, but reluctantly withdrew having suffered another injury.
Some of darts’ most iconic names have turned over to punditry, including most famously Wayne Mardle.
Taylor is now 64-years-old and is far from his prime years, with his legacy in competition more than in tact.
The sport is evolving with averages now higher than ever, but the veteran remains a key figurehead of its development.
There is now no need for Taylor to make any new comebacks despite any financial temptation.
And that was effectively put in stone, by news that he had suffered a career-ending injury, despite insisting his mind is still in the sport.
He said during an interview with talkSPORT last month: “I’m retired now, properly retired.
“My eyes started going a few years ago then my hip went and then the travelling.
“You’re away from home four-five days a week and it’s good for money but it’s not good for your family. My mind is still in my teens but my body is 90.
“How did I keep going? If I won a players championship that paid for the food bills. Every tournament was about paying the bills.”
