'The Bullet' Weathers Huge Scare as 'The Royal Bengal' Creates History for India.
The tournament's fourth seed survived a monumental scare to progress into the next stage of the prestigious tournament on the opening weekend.
'The Bullet', who was a beaten semi-finalist last year, was pushed all the way to a deciding tie-breaker by Poland’s Sebastian Bialecki before securing a 3-2 victory at Alexandra Palace.
An Eventful Match
Bunting began in blistering fashion, posting a superb 119.4 to power through the first set. He looked in total control after checking out a spectacular 160 finish to seize the second set.
However, his momentum stalled, and he managed just one leg over the next two sets. This let Bialecki – who remained unfazed even when a wasp landed on his shoulder – to draw level. Bunting found his rhythm in the decider, but was still pushed to the limit before securing it 4-2.
“Performing at Alexandra Palace you experience all the emotions,” Bunting stated on Sky Sports. “I knew Sebastian was going to be difficult and even at 2-0 he never gave in. I am lucky to get away with that one.”
Kumar Makes Historic Victory
Bunting's second-round foe will be Nitin Kumar, who made history by becoming the pioneering Indian at the event. He defeated the Netherlands' Richard Veenstra 3-2 in a closely-fought match.
The 40-year-old, who had lost in all four of his previous first-round appearances, implied this breakthrough could have “created a pathway to a billion potential” darts players from India.
“I don’t know right now. I’m ecstatic, I’m thrilled,” Kumar stated. “Dream big, anything is achievable. I’ve dreamed of this ever since I watched Dennis Priestley win the World Championship.”
He joked with a light-hearted prediction: “I’m sorry, ten years from now if you have multiple players in the world championship walking on to Indian film songs, don’t blame me.”
Other Opening Day Results
- Darren Beveridge: The Scotland's debutant made an convincing start, averaging 91.62 in a dominant 3-0 win over Belgium's Dimitri Van den Bergh, who won just one leg.
- Jonny Tata: Another first-timer, from New Zealand, ended the hopes of world No. 27 Ritchie Edhouse with a resounding 3-0 victory.
- Dom Taylor: The other newcomer defeated Sweden’s Oskar Lukasiak by the identical 3-0 scoreline.
- Joe Cullen: The world No. 32 was in fine fettle as he eased past Bradley Brooks 3-0.
- Wesley Plaisier: The Dutch player overcame Germany’s Lukas Wenig 3-1.
- James Hurrell: Concluded the evening's play with a 3-1 victory over American Stowe Buntz.
