Sherrock: "Hopefully we get to a point where it's not massive news anymore"
Monday 21 September 2020 17:21, UK
Fallon Sherrock is hoping to achieve yet another remarkable milestone this weekend, as she competes in the World Series of Darts Finals in Austria.
'The Queen of the Palace' had enjoyed a whirlwind few months before lockdown, becoming the first-ever woman to win a game at the PDC World Championships, and making her Premier League debut with a 6-6 draw against Glen Durrant.
But whatever the Milton Keynes native goes on to achieve from here, she hopes that it will be noted for her ability rather than her gender.
"The next step to it all would be - oh, it's not just a woman beating a man. It's two great players playing against each other and the winner, yes it might happen to be a woman but it's not seen as 'a woman', it's seen as a really good player," she said.
"It would be really nice to get to that point, where it's not a surprise anymore. There are many other women. You've got Lorraine [Winstanley], Ana (Anastasia Dobromyslova), Beau Greaves, all of them people. Even Mikuru [Suzuki].
"We can all beat the men. And obviously the more we do it, the more we do it. And hopefully we get to a point where it's not massive news anymore, it's just 'yeah, they've beaten a man'. That's the normality."
One of Sherrock's primary objectives is to follow in the footsteps of Ashton and win a PDC Tour Card.
"What Lisa has done is brilliant. It's such an achievement, and it's definitely something that I aspire to do as well," she smiled.
"Seeing how she has beaten all these men on the Pro Tour, it just gives me more incentive to go to Q-School, get my card and go to the Pro Tour and play on that. She has definitely inspired me to practice a bit more and get onto that."
Right now, the history-making 26-year-old is eager to mark her return to the big stage in style this weekend.
"I'm really looking forward to it," she outlined. "I'm really excited. Obviously this is the first proper darts match really that I've played since 'lockdown darts'.
"It's going to be different - instead of playing on the webcams, I'm actually going to have someone physically in front of me, playing on a big stage again. I'm just so excited to get back up there again."
This weekend's tournament is all the more notable, as it will be the first professional darts event since March where fans will be in attendance.
"I love just playing in general. When there's a crowd behind me, it's such an atmosphere, a buzz, and it gives you more of a platform to play better. I've got so much support, and I never had anything like that, so it's still a new thing for me," she explained.
"I love my fans behind me. Watching the PDC darts on the TV where they haven't had any fans, I think it's going to be a very exciting prospect to get the fans back at the darts again, which is where we want to get to.
"I always seem to thrive on the big stages."
Nonetheless, the last few months were a departure from what was planned to be a whirlwind 2020, as she was scheduled to be taking part in World Series events all over the globe.
"It's been disappointing, because I was really looking forward to going, playing darts around the world, and visiting places that I had never been to before," she sighed.
"So I obviously was a bit disappointed by that. But it's probably done me a bit of good, because I think because I was so busy and I was playing so much, I think I needed a break. The lockdown has given me the break I needed to refuel.
"Hopefully it has worked out."
Last month, the PDC launched its Women's Series, a four-event competition in October with the winner being rewarded with a spot at the Alexandra Palace.
It is a move hugely welcomed by female players in the sport.
"I think it's a brilliant idea," said Sherrock.
"We've always needed more opportunities. Now we can show how our standard has improved over the past couple of years. This is a perfect opportunity for us to show what we can do. Obviously if I qualify, I'm going to be so excited again, because I love playing at the World Championship. That is where I want to get to again. It was a surreal experience.
"I'm going to try my best to get there again because it's definitely something I want to do."
Darts returns to Sky Sports in October with the World Grand Prix and the Premier League Play-Offs. Follow us @SkySportsDarts to stay up to date with all the news.
