The Merseyside thrower Weathers Major Scare as The Indian pioneer Secures A Landmark for India.
The tournament's fourth seed edged through a tense battle to move into the next stage of the prestigious tournament on the opening weekend.
The Merseysider, who was a beaten semi-finalist last year, was forced all the way to a deciding tie-breaker by Polish qualifier Sebastian Bialecki before finally clinching a 3-2 victory at the iconic Ally Pally venue.
An Eventful Battle
Bunting made a flying start, averaging an incredible 119.4 en route to powering through the opening set. The win appeared certain after hitting a spectacular 160 finish to seize the second set.
Yet, ‘The Bullet’ cooled off, and he won just one leg over the subsequent two sets. This let Bialecki – who remained oblivious even when a wasp settled on his shoulder – to draw level. Bunting regained his composure in the decider, but was still taken to the wire before taking it 4-2.
“Performing at Alexandra Palace you experience all the emotions,” Bunting told Sky Sports. “I knew Sebastian was going to be difficult and even at 2-0 he never gave in. I am lucky to come through that one.”
Kumar Secures Landmark Win
Bunting's next opponent will be 'The Royal Bengal', who made history by becoming the initial victor from India at the event. He beat the Netherlands' Richard Veenstra 3-2 in a thrilling contest.
The 40-year-old, who had lost in all four of his prior first-round matches, implied this landmark win could have “paved the way to a billion potential” darts players from his homeland.
“Words fail me today. I’m overwhelmed, I’m happy,” said Kumar. “Dream big, anything is achievable. I’ve dreamed of this ever since I watched Dennis Priestley win the World Championship.”
He joked with a humorous prediction: “I’m sorry, a decade in the future if you have eight people in the world championship entering to Bollywood music, you know who started it.”
Other Opening Day Action
- Darren Beveridge: The Scottish debutant made an convincing start, averaging 91.62 in a one-sided 3-0 win over Belgian Dimitri Van den Bergh, who managed 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 beat Sweden’s Oskar Lukasiak by the same 3-0 margin.
- Joe Cullen: The world No. 32 was in excellent touch as he eased past Bradley Brooks 3-0.
- Wesley Plaisier: The Dutch player overcame Germany’s Lukas Wenig 3-1.
- James Hurrell: Rounded off the evening's play with a 3-1 victory over America’s Stowe Buntz.
