ADRIAN LEWIS HAS been handed a suspended three-month ban and fined £3,000 following his altercation with Jose Justicia during the UK Open qualifiers.
Lewis, a two-time world champion, was seemingly upset at perceived gamesmanship from the Spaniard, whom he pushed in the chest during his 6-5 quarter-final victory last Friday.
The PDC subsequently announced that Lewis, who went on to lose to Michael van Gerwen in the semis, had been suspended while the Darts Regulation Authority (DRA) looked into the situation.
And the DRA has acted swiftly after Lewis admitted breaching the rules, handing him a ban suspended for six months, which means he is now free to return to action.
“I am now in a position to issue a statement as the due process has taken place and the Darts Regulation Authority have had their hearing,” Lewis wrote in a statement.
I deeply regret that my frustrations got the better of me as I felt that my opponent was trying to provoke me.
“I realise now that I should have reported any problems to the tournament officials instead of confronting Jose Antonio Justicia Perales after the match.
“I would like to offer my sincere apologies to the PDC, the sponsors of the event Coral, my own sponsors who I think for their loyalty and support, my manager, dart fans and finally my family.
“I would like to say a big thank you for all of the kind messages sent to me from all over the world, and now I just want to put this all behind me and concentrate on playing the game I love and trying to make my way back into the top.”
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