'The Bullet' Survives Significant Scare while The Indian pioneer Makes History for Indian Darts.
The tournament's fourth seed narrowly avoided an early exit to advance into the second round of the prestigious tournament on the opening weekend.
Bunting, who was a losing semi-finalist last year, was taken all the way to a deciding tie-breaker by Poland’s Sebastian Bialecki before finally clinching a hard-fought victory at the iconic Ally Pally venue.
A Turbulent Encounter
Bunting stormed out of the blocks, averaging an incredible 119.4 en route to powering through the first set. Victory seemed assured after checking out a spectacular 160 finish to claim the second set.
However, ‘The Bullet’ cooled off, and he won just one leg over the next two sets. This let Bialecki – who remained oblivious even when a wasp landed on his shoulder – to square the match. Bunting regained his composure in the decider, but was still taken to the wire before winning it 4-2.
“Competing at Ally Pally you feel all the feelings,” Bunting told broadcasters. “I knew Sebastian was going to be tough and even at 2-0 he never gave in. I am lucky to get away with that one.”
Kumar Secures Landmark Win
Bunting's second-round foe will be Nitin Kumar, who made history by becoming the initial victor from India at the event. He beat the Netherlands' Richard Veenstra 3-2 in a closely-fought match.
The veteran player, who had been defeated in all four of his previous first-round appearances, implied this landmark win could have “paved the way to a billion potential” darts players from India.
“I’m lost for words at this moment. I’m emotional, I’m happy,” said Kumar. “Dream big, anything is achievable. This vision motivated me ever since I saw Dennis Priestley win the World Championship.”
He added with a light-hearted warning: “I’m sorry, a decade in the future if you have multiple players in the world championship entering to Indian film songs, don’t blame me.”
Additional First-Round Results
- Darren Beveridge: The Scotland's debutant made an convincing start, averaging 91.62 in a comprehensive 3-0 win over Belgian Dimitri Van den Bergh, who managed just one leg.
- Jonny Tata: Another debutant, from New Zealand, ended the hopes of world No. 27 Ritchie Edhouse with a resounding 3-0 victory.
- Dom Taylor: The fellow newcomer beat Sweden’s Oskar Lukasiak by the identical 3-0 scoreline.
- Joe Cullen: The world No. 32 was in excellent touch as he eased past Bradley Brooks 3-0.
- Wesley Plaisier: The Dutch player beat Germany’s Lukas Wenig 3-1.
- James Hurrell: Rounded off the evening's play with a 3-1 victory over American Stowe Buntz.