Cameron Menzies took to social media with an emotional post about his dad after crying on stage during his defeat to Leonard Gates at the World Darts Championship.

The 35-year-old went into the match in strong form but crashed out at the first hurdle, with Gates storming to a 3-1 victory to book his place in the second round.

Menzies clearly struggled to keep it together during the match and was in tears before it had even finished. He was wiping his eyes during the final two legs and looked visibly upset when Gates hit the winning dart.

After the match had ended, Menzies posted a now-deleted image of himself alongside his dad in hospital on X (formerly Twitter) alongside the caption: “I didn’t wanna post this man… my dad my hero.”

Menzies, who is the partner of Fallon Sherrock, struggled to find trebles in the final set of the match and missed 27 of his 32 doubles attempts. 

Some members of the crowd at Alexandra Palace began to ironically cheer his throws as his game imploded, with Gates taking full advantage by claiming a surprise victory.

Reflecting on the match, three-time Lakeside champion Glen Durrant told Sky Sports: “On the floor, Cammy has been the best player in the room. He’s the one that has stood out. It feels like it is a different game when you go on stage.

“It is just not happening for him. He is full of emotion. When you look at his preparation, he will have to work out if he is to find a solution about why he doesn’t play on the stage as he does on the floor. He’s extremely talented.

“But at the end, it was a little worrying, I didn’t know if he was getting upset, if the heat was getting to him. It was a pretty bizarre ending.”

Gates, who will go up against Nathan Aspinall in the next round, was seen offering some words of encouragement to Menzies after the match.

Explaining what was said between the pair, the American revealed: “I told him to use the energy, don’t look at it as a negative, look at it as a positive. Just use that energy, play a lot more darts, get better, keep showing the PDC what we can do.

“I told him: ‘I hope you can block it out and play the game. Don’t get involved with negativity as someone is cheering against you. Focus on what you are doing. Go forward’. I use that energy to block it out.

“It’s one of those things, you have to block out certain things. Do what you are there to do. I went back to the basics, throw your darts, check the scores.

“I hope I said things that will help him in his game, personally in life also. He has to figure out what it is. If he needs more help, I hope I said something that will build his confidence.”