Wayne Mardle's first words on Sky Sports Darts return after wife's tragic death

Darts fans have celebrated Wayne Mardle's return to the commentary booth as the opening night of Premier League darts got underway on Thursday night. The popular commentator took his place in Belfast for the first time since the tragic passing of his wife, Donna in December. Mardle missed the entire World Darts Championship after she died shortly before the start of the competition. Mardle has become an iconic voice of darts following his retirement from playing, and drew wider fame when his iconic "I CAN'T SPAKE” commentary went viral after Michael Smith landed a nine-darter in the 2023 final. The cherished 51-year-old commentator has received an overwhelming positive response as he lends his voice to a night that sees a world championship rematch between Luke Littler, looking to retain his Premier League title, and Michael van Gerwen, on Thursday night.

Mardle didn't commentate on the opening two clashes, which were Chris Dobey vs Gerwyn Price and Stephen Bunting vs Rob Cross. He did, however, appear for Littler's showdown with Van Gerwen, while Nathan Aspinall vs Luke Humphries will also take place at the SSE Arena. As he made a low-key return to commentating, he said: "Good evening - evening all, didn't take him long (in response to Van Gerwen's start)!" He then got straight to work as he gave his expert view on Littler's clash with Van Gerwen.

Mardle's impact was well-received by viewers at home. "Wayne Mardle back on the darts comms. Absolutely love to see it," said one X-user. "It’s so good to hear Mardle back! Hope he’s doing well!" added another. "So happy to see wayne mardle back missed him," said one fan. "Mardle back on comms. A beautiful treat for the ears.". On December 15, it was announced that Donna had passed away following a battle with cancer. The PDC paid tribute to Mardle's family.

A statement read: "All our thoughts and condolences are with Wayne Mardle and his family, after the passing of his wife Donna earlier this week.". Before the opening match of the World Darts Championship at Alexandra Palace, Sky Sports host Emma Paton paid an emotional tribute too. Mardle missed the whole competition on compassionate leave. "If you're a regular viewer of Sky Sports Darts, you will notice that Wayne isn't with us this evening," Emma Paton said. "Wayne is the heart and soul of everything we do at Sky Sports Darts. But the heart of his world, his wonderful wife Donna, sadly passed away earlier this week after a short illness.

"We will be remembering Donna throughout the tournament, Wayne you are in our thoughts, you are in our hearts and we love you very much. We will see you soon.". Mardle's return coincides with the opening night of action for the Premier League competition. The eight aforementioned players will tour 17 venues across the UK and Europe every Thursday night until the Play-Offs at The O2 arena in London on May 29.

Littler and co will fight for a top prize of £275,000, and can rack up £10,000 for each Thursday victory thanks to a £1million prize pot across the competition. Points are available for the top four players each week and the four players with the highest total come the end of week 16 will advance to the Play-Offs where two semi-finals and a final will be held. Sky has slashed the price of its Essential TV and Sky Sports bundle in an unbeatable new deal that saves £192 and includes 1,400 live matches across the Premier League, EFL and more.