"It's weird. I said today that I think I can actually have a go at this; whether I can or not, I don't know, but I feel like I can"
Friday 29 December 2017 19:15, UK
Phil Taylor says he is "starting to believe" he can win his 17th World Darts Championship title as he prepares to bid farewell to the sport.
The 57-year-old, playing in his last tournament before retirement, was in peak form as he eased to a 4-0 win over former world youth champion Keegan Brown.
Taylor's performance will raise hopes that he can go all the way again after he averaged 101.34 and hit 12 of his 19 darts at doubles.
I'm going to go out with a big smile on my face, and if I start losing the crowd will get on my side and if I start winning the crowd will get on my side, so I'm going to enjoy the next game.
"I am starting to believe I can win," admitted Taylor. "It's weird. I said today that I think I can actually have a go at this; whether I can or not, I don't know, but I feel like I can. If my confidence is up and I can play properly then I think I can give them a game.
"I can win it. I think the first round was the one that really shocked me, against Chris Dobey. He really is the up and coming player. For the first two sets he wasn't there and then he started coming back, and I thought 'I'm going to lose this'.
"The second round was a non-game really, with the crowd and Justin [Pipe] was never going to be in the game. Keegan's a good player and you knew you could go up there and concentrate more and put him under pressure.
"I knew it was the biggest game and I watched him in the last game when he was on a shot to win and he got nervous, so if I could put him under pressure from the beginning then he was going to feel the pressure and get nervous, and that was my plan all along, to try and nick the first couple of sets. I did and then he started playing well, and under pressure he was brilliant!"
Taylor will take on Gary Anderson on Friday night after the Scot overcame an apparent back problem to see off Steve West 4-2.
The two-time world champion, who beat Taylor in the 2015 final, looked far from his best but eventually got the job done before hobbling off the oche.
"Whoever I play next is under pressure, because I'm going to enjoy it," Taylor added. "I'm going to go out with a big smile on my face, and if I start losing the crowd will get on my side and if I start winning the crowd will get on my side, so I'm going to enjoy the next game."
The 2018 World Championship from Alexandra Palace continues with a mouthwatering double session of quarter-final action on Friday on Sky Sports Darts, coverage of the afternoon's play gets underway from 12.30pm with the evening underway at 7pm
Keep up to date with the news as the PDC celebrates 25 years on Sky Sports, right through to the final on New Year's Day. Get all the latest at www.skysports.com/darts and join in the conversation @SkySportsDarts- don't forget to use #LoveTheDarts
