The Merseyside thrower Survives Huge Fright as The Indian pioneer Makes A Landmark for India.
Stephen Bunting edged through a tense battle to move into the second round of the world darts championship on Sunday.
Bunting, who reached beaten semi-finalist last year, was taken all the way to a dramatic fifth leg by Poland’s Sebastian Bialecki before finally clinching a 3-2 victory at Alexandra Palace.
An Eventful Battle
Bunting stormed out of the blocks, averaging an incredible 119.4 as he powered through the opening set. Victory seemed assured after hitting a spectacular 160 finish to seize the second set.
Nevertheless, his form dipped, and he won just one leg over the subsequent two sets. This allowed Bialecki – who remained unfazed even when a wasp landed on his shoulder – to draw level. Bunting steadied himself in the decider, but was still pushed to the limit before winning it 4-2.
“Competing at Ally Pally you experience all the feelings,” Bunting explained to Sky Sports. “I was aware Sebastian was going to be difficult and even at 2-0 he kept fighting. I am lucky to come through that one.”
Kumar Secures Landmark Win
Bunting's next opponent will be 'The Royal Bengal', who achieved a first by becoming the pioneering Indian at the event. He beat Dutchman Richard Veenstra 3-2 in a thrilling match.
The 40-year-old, who had been defeated in all four of his prior first-round appearances, implied this landmark win could have “created a pathway to a billion” darts players from his homeland.
“I don’t know at this moment. I’m ecstatic, I’m happy,” Kumar expressed. “Dream big, anything is achievable. This was my dream ever since I saw 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 walking on to Indian film songs, you know who started it.”
Further Opening Day Action
- Darren Beveridge: The Scottish debutant made an impressive start, averaging 91.62 in a one-sided 3-0 win over Belgian Dimitri Van den Bergh, who won just one leg.
- Jonny Tata: Another debutant, from New Zealand, ended the hopes of world No. 27 Ritchie Edhouse with a commanding 3-0 victory.
- Dom Taylor: The other newcomer beat Sweden’s Oskar Lukasiak by the identical 3-0 scoreline.
- Joe Cullen: The world No. 32 was in excellent touch as he comfortably defeated Bradley Brooks 3-0.
- Wesley Plaisier: The Dutch player beat Germany’s Lukas Wenig 3-1.
- James Hurrell: Concluded the evening's play with a 3-1 victory over America’s Stowe Buntz.
