Stephen Bunting Weathers Major Fright while 'The Royal Bengal' Makes History for Indian Darts.
The tournament's fourth seed survived a monumental scare to progress into the second round of the prestigious tournament on the opening weekend.
'The Bullet', who was a losing semi-finalist last year, was pushed all the way to a dramatic fifth leg by Poland’s Sebastian Bialecki before securing a 3-2 victory at the iconic Ally Pally venue.
An Eventful Match
Bunting made a flying start, posting a superb 119.4 as he powered through the first set. He looked in total control after landing a spectacular 160 finish to claim the second set.
However, his momentum stalled, and he managed just one leg over the next two sets. This enabled Bialecki – who remained oblivious even when a wasp settled on his shoulder – to draw level. Bunting steadied himself in the decider, but was still taken to the wire before securing it 4-2.
“Performing at this venue you go through all the emotions,” Bunting stated on broadcasters. “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 Secures Landmark Win
Bunting's next opponent will be 'The Royal Bengal', who made history by becoming the first Indian winner at the event. He defeated the Netherlands' Richard Veenstra 3-2 in a thrilling match.
The veteran player, who had lost in all four of his prior first-round matches, remarked this landmark win could have “opened the floodgates to a billion potential” darts players from India.
“Words fail me at this moment. I’m ecstatic, I’m delighted,” Kumar stated. “With belief, 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 walking on to Bollywood music, don’t blame me.”
Further First-Round 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, dashed the hopes of world No. 27 Ritchie Edhouse with a clear 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 fine fettle 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.
