Stephen Bunting edged through a tense battle to move into the second round of the prestigious tournament on Sunday.
Bunting, who reached losing semi-finalist last year, was taken all the way to a deciding tie-breaker by Polish qualifier Sebastian Bialecki before finally clinching a hard-fought victory at Alexandra Palace.
A Turbulent Match
Bunting began in blistering fashion, averaging an incredible 119.4 to power through the first set. He looked in total control after hitting a spectacular 160 finish to claim the second set.
Nevertheless, his form dipped, and he managed just one leg over the subsequent two sets. This allowed Bialecki – who remained unfazed even when a wasp landed on his shoulder – to pull back. Bunting steadied himself in the decider, but was still taken to the wire before taking it 4-2.
“Performing at Ally Pally you go through all the emotions,” Bunting stated on Sky Sports. “I knew Sebastian was going to be tough and even at 2-0 he never surrendered. I am lucky to come through that one.”
Kumar Secures Groundbreaking Win
Bunting's second-round foe will be Nitin Kumar, who created a landmark by becoming the initial victor from India at the tournament. He beat the Netherlands' Richard Veenstra 3-2 in a thrilling contest.
The veteran player, who had been defeated in all four of his prior first-round matches, implied this landmark win could have “opened the floodgates to a billion potential” darts players from India.
“I don’t know at this moment. I’m ecstatic, I’m happy,” said Kumar. “With belief, anything is achievable. This was my dream ever since I saw Dennis Priestley win the World Championship.”
He concluded with a light-hearted warning: “I’m sorry, a decade down the line if you have multiple players in the world championship entering to Bollywood music, don’t blame me.”
Other First-Round Action
- Darren Beveridge: The Scottish debutant made an convincing start, averaging 91.62 in a comprehensive 3-0 win over Belgian Dimitri Van den Bergh, who won just one leg.
- Jonny Tata: Another first-timer, from New Zealand, dashed 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 margin.
- Joe Cullen: The world No. 32 was in good form as he comfortably defeated 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 America’s Stowe Buntz.
