TAYLOR “IMPOSSIBLE” TO MATCH SAYS HETA
22/11/2023 By Phil Lanning
DAMON HETA reckons it is “impossible” for anyone to match Phil Taylor’s legendary oche record.
The Power revealed earlier this week that he is quitting competition darts at the end of 2024.
Having won 16-times world titles, his nearest rival still playing is Raymond van Barneveld, with five titles.
And Heta, 36, cannot see anyone dominating like Taylor did in the 90s and early noughties.
Australia’s World No.10 told bettingsites.co.uk: “The greatest of all time? It’s got to be Phil Taylor. To win 16 world titles? That’s insane.
“Whether anyone can catch that number I don’t know. But you’d need to see someone averaging 110+ over 16 years and that’s basically impossible.
“He was next level in all the stories I hear and the stats still show he was an absolute beast.”
Heta KO’d Michael van Gerwen on the way to reaching the quarter-finals of the Grand Slam last week.
But despite his rising stock in the sport, he is not hell-bent on reaching the Premier League.
He added: “The Premier League is a massive thing don’t get me wrong but it’s not something where I’ve thought ‘I must do this so I get into it’. It’s not really been my goal.
“My goal has been more like Pro Tours and Euro Tours and the big ones because everything else just comes along with it.
“If I got offered it I’d take it because you never know if that opportunity is going to come along again. But it’s not the be all and end all and I’m not overly fussed about it.”
Heta and Simon Whitlock led Australia to the nation’s first ever World Cup title in 2022 by beating Wales in the final and The Heat explained why it’s the high point of his darts career thus far.
He added: “You’re playing for your country and that’s massive. But it brings with it added pressure in terms of not wanting to let your teammate down and with Australia watching back home. “Everyone’s so amped up it feels like a totally different environment than just normal, singles darts. It’s absolutely massive and that’s the highlight so far.”
Images by Taylor Lanning.
