Darts followers had been shocked to listen to a former PDC Tour star announce his retirement halfway by a current match
Paul Nicholson has introduced his retirement from enjoying darts (Picture: Getty)
Former PDC Tour winner Paul Nicholson has confirmed his retirement from darts, and he did so halfway by a match. ‘The Asset’ was working commentary throughout a current MODUS Tremendous Sequence occasion when he introduced his enjoying days had been over.
Nicholson, 46, reached the height of his powers round 2010, the identical yr he gained his solely televised title on the Gamers Championship. He went on to achieve the deciding match on the 2011 Championship League, in addition to having a runner-up end on the 2012 World Cup of Darts. However regardless of by no means formally calling time on his profession, the Newcastle-born star has now rubber-stamped his exit as a participant. And former World Championship quarter-finalist Nicholson was commentating on a Seniors Showdown matchup between Johnny Haines and Terry Jenkins when he shocked viewers with the information.
“I can truly inform you, at this cut-off date, I’ve by no means mentioned this out loud till now, I’m retired,” mentioned. “I’ve determined to not play darts anymore.
“That’s one thing I’ve mentioned to myself over the brand new yr. I’m 100 per cent media now and I’ve determined to not play darts anymore.”
Not everybody will take the event as a shock, contemplating Nicholson has been departed from the higher echelons of the game for a while. He hasn’t been part of the PDC since 2019, when he determined to skip Q Faculty so as to work on his recreation.
Nonetheless, a return has by no means materialised, and now by no means will. Nicholson, who is aware of a factor or two about how shortly one can fall out of the limelight, will as an alternative look to place his penchant for showmanship to raised use by working from the sidelines.
In addition to successful the Gamers Championship, The Asset additionally garnered consideration for some flamboyant entrances, to not point out his transient feud with darts legend Phil Taylor. The pair had a number of tense run-ins over the course of a few years and exchanged in a little bit of verbal back-and-forth by the media.
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Paul Nicholson has simply formally introduced his retirement as a participant and can deal with media work. pic.twitter.com/xghew87FP4
— MODUS Tremendous Sequence (@MSSdarts) January 8, 2026
Nicholson infamously defeated ‘The Energy’ to achieve the quarter-finals of the 2011 UK Open, after which he made the courageous determination to wave the icon off the stage. It might find yourself being a poor determination, nevertheless, as Taylor by no means misplaced one other match to Nicholson over the course of his profession.
In actual fact, after shedding every of their first two encounters in 2010 and 2011, Taylor launched into a 14-win streak in opposition to Nicholson. The 16-time world champion additionally referred to his rival as “very, very foolish” and mentioned he had “an enormous mouth” that he struggled to maintain shut.
Nicholson was one thing of a pantomime villain on the high of his recreation and revelled within the theatrical aspect of the game. Nonetheless, he did not have an opportunity to point out it in recent times after falling out of the limelight.
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He represented his adopted nation of Australia in competitors and even confronted Taylor in a World Cup closing. His appearances would typically usher in a refrain of boos amongst followers, a lot of whom wished to see him fail.
That being mentioned, these skills might effectively be put to good use with the previous PDC common on the mic as an alternative. And followers have not heard the final of him regardless of his retirement from enjoying.
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