Sky Sports Darts’ Wayne Mardle fears Peter Wright could be nearing the end of his career after his torrid run of form ended his Grand Slam campaign early.
A 5-1 defeat at John Cross on Monday night saw the two-time world champions crash out of the tournament in Wolverhampton, having failed to win any of their three group matches.
Mardle revealed that Wright shared a stark assessment of the state of his game at the moment, an alarming admission in the eyes of the Sky Sports pundit with less than five weeks to go before the World Darts Championship kicks off.
“Peter Wright’s fitness is a concern,” said Mardle. “This is a period that has been going on for some time.
“I think a positive result can mask the problems that might be there and I think the European Championship last year did that. It happened unexpectedly, it really did. A European Tour win was also missed this year.
“He can still do it, but when he’s out, my word is he’s out. He has no B game at all.
“He was joking with us upstairs about how rubbish he was, but I felt he meant it. He was joking about it, but I kind of felt for him at that point.”
Peter Wright bowed out of the Grand Slam of Darts after three group stage defeats
Mardle, who retired from darts in 2012, had no time left for Wright’s career but suggested a final hurray at the World Championships could provide an exciting final chapter for Snakebite.
“We know how good he can be,” added Mardle. “But let’s be honest, he’s closer to the end of his career than the beginning.
“He was world champion two years ago, but he’s 54 years old, how many more good years would he have?
“If he finds another purple, another Peter Wright patch, he’ll be fine (at the World Cup), but he’s got to find it now because it’s taken long enough.”
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