Former world champion and Sky Sports pundit Mark Webster was among the critics, arguing she should never have been permitted to take part. Webster said: "The backlash Fallon got is nothing she's done wrong.

"Ultimately, I don't think she should have been selected to play, but then you can't blame Fallon for going to try and win half a million pounds in fair play."

"I don't think she should have been able to play. I didn't like the way it was made as an amateur beats Luke Littler, and a lot of them weren't amateurs. Fallon's a professional player."

He went on to say: "She'll be quite chilled. I'm not saying she has financial burdens, but that's going to really help going forward – doing things for her."

He told Daily Star Sport via the top Counter-Strike teams today: "Fallon broke no rules and it's been disappointing to see the negativity aimed at the decision and to Fallon. It's darts. Some days we play fantastic and next day the game is hard work.

"It's fair to say that he wasn't at his best, and the players, in hindsight, had a wonderful opportunity. It's proof he's not a robot."

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Sherrock herself fired back at the response to her victory, describing it as "tough".

She explained: "I mean it's been tough. Because obviously I do see the backlash and I do see all the negative comments. But at the end of the day, I fit the criteria for this. I've never had a tour card, and I wouldn't class myself as a pro really, because all I do is just play darts for the enjoyment of it.

"I think people forget where I started off as well. When I won at the Worlds, I was still just doing WDF (World Darts Federation). I'm just so happy to overcome all the hate and win."