The hustle and bustle surrounding her – it seems – is still suspect to Fallon Sherrock three years after her historic success!
Bild am Sonntag (BamS) met the 28-year-old at the Mannheim Darts Gala, one of the last show tournaments before the highlight of the season: the Darts World Championships in London. In 2020, Sherrock had achieved history with a woman’s first two World Cup victories, and in 2022 she was eliminated in the first round.
This is her third appearance at Alexandra Palace and she meets Ricky Evans in round one. Even though she wasn’t actually qualified. 18-year-old Beau Greaves had won the last eight tournaments on the women’s tour, overtaking Sherrock in the rankings. But because Sherrock won the Women’s World Matchplay in July, the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) gave her a starting place a week before the World Championship draw.
BILD am SONNTAG: How relieved were you when you found out about your participation in the World Cup?
Fallon Sherrock: I jumped up and down at home, I was so excited. I couldn’t believe it and wondered if they were serious. But in the end I’m just happy to have gotten this place. I didn’t expect it anymore. My manager called me and told me to turn off my cell phone for an hour. “Why?” I asked him. In retrospect, of course, I know that my participation was made public at that moment. When I turned my phone back on, it exploded with messages.
BILD am SONNTAG: Be honest: did you even deserve the place at the World Cup?
Sherrock: Why shouldn’t I have earned it?
PICTURE ON SUNDAY: Your critics say that your sporting achievements only played a supporting role and that you were nominated primarily for marketing reasons. The PDC didn’t want to do without their female draft horse.
Sherrock: It doesn’t matter what these people say. I won a major tournament in front of TV cameras (Women’s World Matchplay; ed.). Yes, it was an all-women tournament, but it was still a big competition. Every other major winner can also start at the World Cup. So you can say what you want: I deserve to be allowed to participate.
Bloodied to the finish Ski star wins with horror hand
PICTURE ON SUNDAY: How important is the Fallon Sherrock brand to darts?
Sherrock: She is definitely helpful. The whole darts world changed overnight after my first win at the 2020 World Cup (3:2 against Ted Evetts; ed.). As a result, more people wanted to play darts and stereotypes were eliminated. Of course I also see the negative aspects. But I don’t mind if I know I’m helping the sport grow. In a few years I can look back and see what I’ve accomplished. And I will always be in the record lists.
PICTURE ON SUNDAY: The successes of that time opened the doors for you. This year you were allowed to travel halfway around the world for invitational tournaments like the World Series. As a result, you missed four tournaments on the women’s tour in August. Ultimately, you lacked the prize money to be earned there to secure your place in the World Cup via the ranking list. Did you get the focus wrong?
Sherrock: The World Series was an opportunity I would never have turned down, regardless of the outcome. Yes, I didn’t qualify for the World Championships by ranking, but I was able to prove myself at the World Series. It’s not every day that I or any other player get a chance like this. I wouldn’t change my decision for anything in the world afterwards.
PICTURE ON SUNDAY: Which trip did you like the most?
Sherrock: New York! The food was great. But also Australia because I saw a kangaroo.
PICTURE ON SUNDAY: What expectations do you have of yourself at the World Cup?
Sherrock: I want to win at least my first game. If I can do that, I’ll see. Then I hope to start a little run like I did the first time I participated. After losing to Steve Beaton last year, I’m definitely going into the tournament more hungry for success. I now know the ups and downs that await at a World Cup.
PICTURE ON SUNDAY: If everything goes perfectly, a duel with your partner Cameron Menzies could be waiting in the quarterfinals.
Sherrock: He would drive home crying. (laughs) Seriously, that would be fun. But we both have to win a few games first. If we then get to the point where we have to compete against each other, I think we’ll be happy with how far we’ve come in the tournament.
PICTURE ON SUNDAY: For the first time three women start with Lisa Ashton, Beau Greaves and you. How do you rate the chances of the other two players?
Sherrock: I hope Lisa and Beau win. The probability is higher than in the past. We’ve all shown that we can win games, and that’s the way it should be at the World Cup. The tasks ahead are therefore not unsolvable.
PICTURE ON SUNDAY: Greaves is the new rising star in women’s darts. The 18-year-old comes from a series of 52 wins on the women’s tour to her first World Cup. What outweighs: the worry of losing your exceptional position or the joy that all the attention is no longer focused on you?
Sherrock: the latter. If you pay a lot of attention, you automatically get a lot of criticism. Hopefully the pressure will be spread a little now. Beau is an asset to the sport.
PICTURE ON SUNDAY: You addressed the criticism of you as a person. How much of it do you get?
Sherrock: Of course you can hear other people talking about you. I don’t think they realize what they are doing. But in the end, I don’t really care about all this controversy. Nothing changes if you deal with it anyway, I’ve learned that over the past few years.
