Two-time darts world champion Gary Anderson has certainly had an interesting last week.
He managed to qualify for the semi-finals for the Premier League, which will hopefully take place at the O2 in London.
After a fraught week of darts, he then announced that he is pulling out of the World Series Finals and Autumn Series of events, which are set to place in Salzburg and Neidernhausen in the next few weeks.
Anderson explained why he wasn’t taking part in the events on a statement on his management team’s Twitter account.
Perhaps the most interesting aspect of the statement is that he claims that he would have played the tournaments if they had been held in the UK.
‘Health and family’ are priority
However, he added that his ‘health and family’ are his priority and as the world continues to deal with the ongoing pandemic he has pulled out of the tournament.
Anderson has made the right decision here. If he does not feel that he wants to travel to Europe for two tournaments at the moments, then it is up to him.
He does not deserve any criticism for his decision. The interesting thing is that Anderson is probably in his best form for a long time this season.
He has not only reached the Premier League semi-finals, but also reached the final of the World Matchplay.
Therefore, in normal circumstances you would think that he would be eager to travel for the tournaments.
Sport has to take a back seat
However, in the current circumstances, sport sometimes has to take a back seat.
More sports stars should follow in Anderson’s lead during these uncertain times if they don’t feel confident about taking part in an event.
Anderson won’t be in action again until the World Grand Prix in the first week of October. If he is still in good form in that tournament then it won’t matter that he took some time off.
For Anderson, it won’t matter anyway, as he has put his family first. That a decision that he will not regret, and nor should he, as he believes that what he is doing is the best decision for both himself and his family.
