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Steve Davis announces retirement

Steve Davis calls time on a snooker career that saw him clinch 28 rankings titles, six of which were World Championships.

Six-time world champion Steve Davis has retired from snooker with immediate effect.

The 58-year-old, who dominated the sport throughout much of the 1980s, has taken the decision after he failed to qualify for this year's World Championships following a defeat to Fergal O'Brien.

"The Fergal O'Brien match was my last and I told [World Snooker chairman] Barry Hearn it was time to call it a day. My father passed away recently and it was natural time to stop playing," he told BBC Sport.

"I should have done it ages ago, I played a bit for my father. I am delighted to have such a great time in the game, I was lucky to have a hobby as my profession.

"It has been a fantastic. The game will move on to other places but I feel like the grandfather of the sport."

In total, Davis won 28 ranking titles, which is second only to Stephen Hendry.

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Ronnie O'Sullivan of England poses with the trophy and his son Ronnie after beating Barry Hawkins of England to win the Betfair World Snooker Championship at the Crucible Theatre on May 6, 2013
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