Mental problems
Darts star talks about taking pills
Updated 12/22/2025 – 9:35 a.mReading time: 2 minutes
Darts star Rob Cross reveals his battle with depression and pill use, triggered by the sudden fame after his world title.
Former darts world champion Rob Cross turned to tablets due to mental problems. The Englishman admitted this on Sunday after moving into the third round of the World Cup and that he had dumped her before the start of the XXL tournament in London’s Alexandra Palace. “I stopped taking my pills,” Cross said, explaining, “I figured it’s better to be friends with the person inside me instead of trying to ignore them.”
Cross had already spoken publicly about his depression last year. The reason for this was the change in his life that the 2018 World Cup title brought about. Back then, Cross had sensationally triumphed as a debutant in the Ally Pally. The 35-year-old now admitted that he had “suffered from it for a long, long time.” It is the first interview in which he talks about his pill consumption.
“When you feel like that, you have to talk about it,” Cross said, “or it will eat you up.” He often “felt down,” explained the 17th in the world rankings. But now he feels “great”. In the second round of the World Cup, Cross won convincingly against veteran Ian White with 3:1 sets. Last year, the four-time major winner was eliminated from that same event.
Cross also recently ran into difficulties with his company. Cross accumulated tax debts with the “Rob Cross Darts Limited”, which he founded to manage the prize money he earned. As it became known last June, the darts professional had to pay more than 450,000 pounds (around 533,000 euros).