Nathan Aspinall sets retirement date after Luke Littler shut down darts rival

Nathan Aspinall has explained that he plans to retire from the world of when he hits 45, meaning the 2023 World Matchplay winner still has plenty of time to rack up more major titles. At 33, the Stockport-born Asp sits ninth in the Order of Merit with two-year career earnings of £496,000 - but he could improve his finances substantially before he eventually calls it a day.

In a recent interview with , said: "45, and I'm off. I've said to my partner if that's me, it is 45. If it's earlier than that, and we start making golfers' money and I've got 30 million in the bank - happy days, I'll be off sooner. But I don't think it's going to happen that quick. But yes, 45 is when I'd like to bugger off." With his 34th birthday on the horizon in July, that gives Aspinall a little over 11 years to make his fortune and clinch his first - a tournament he has come agonisingly close to winning on two occasions now.

Aspinall made it to the semi-finals of the tournament in 2019 and 2020, only to be handed 6-3 losses to and respectively. Meanwhile, the Englishman has earned runner-up spots at the Grand Slam of Darts, World Grand Prix, and World Series for his efforts.

Despite this, Aspinall has thrived in other major tournaments - winning the 2019 UK Open with a 11-5 win over , and the 2023 World Matchplay courtesy of a 18-6 win over Jonny Clayton. Aspinall now has his sights set on winning the Premier League for the first time on Thursday evening, when he clashes with world No. 1 in the semi-finals of the play-offs at London's O2.

If successful in his efforts, he will then face either or in the final. It comes as he recently claimed to enjoy an early retirement, given his domination of the sport at such a young age.

The Nuke made history in January by becoming the youngest-ever winner of a PDC World Championship at the age of 17 thanks to his win over Van Gerwen in the final - but he has shut down any speculation of calling it quits any time soon. Commenting on his own plans for the future, Littler said: "I don't know where he's got that from - don't worry, I'll be here in 10 years. It's crazy to even think about retiring.

"If I win 16 world titles like , I'll retire, but I'm not even thinking about retirement at the minute - the money is there to be won, especially the World Championship, but not only that. Everything has gone up. It is all about what you're feeling, and I'm sure I'll be here for a long time."

Littler, who won last year's Premier League, will hope to defend his title when he returns to the O2 on Thursday evening. The 18-year-old secured his spot in the play-offs by topping the league standings with 27 wins and 10 losses in total this season and will hope to utilise his form to clinch the top £275,000 prize.