Phil Taylor to reunite with Adrian Lewis for November darts return

Phil Taylor will partner Adrian Lewis at the Modus Super Series International Pairs tournament in Portsmouth from 23 to 28 November, BBC Sport reported on Tuesday. The announcement brings the 16-time world champion back into competition alongside a former England team-mate with whom he won four World Cup of Darts titles.

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Taylor, 66, said the opportunity to play with Lewis was central to his decision. In comments carried by the BBC, he explained that previous approaches had not persuaded him to return, but that this partnership offered the right reason. Lewis, 41, also welcomed the reunion, pointing to their shared successes and experience of winning together.

Taylor retired from the professional circuit in 2018, although he subsequently appeared at the World Seniors Darts Championship in 2022, 2023 and 2024. The November appearance therefore follows earlier senior events rather than an uninterrupted absence from competitive darts. His career record includes 214 professional tournament victories and 87 major titles, according to the BBC.

Their last World Cup triumph together came in 2016. The American Darts Organization's contemporary results report records England beating the Netherlands 3-2 in the final in Frankfurt, where Michael van Gerwen and Raymond van Barneveld formed the Dutch team. Taylor and Lewis had beaten Austria in the quarter-finals and Northern Ireland in the semi-finals, both by 2-0 margins.

Lewis won consecutive world championships in 2011 and 2012 before announcing a break from the professional circuit in April 2023. Sky Sports reported at the time that he felt he needed time away after more than 20 years. His first world title included a nine-dart leg against Gary Anderson in the final, a landmark performance in his individual career.

He has since played in the Modus pairs competition with another former world champion. Darts News reported that Lewis and Steve Beaton represented England in August 2025, recording four wins and four defeats in their group. They finished fourth and missed the final stage, leaving Lewis without a title from that return to the event.