The Merseyside thrower Endures Major Test as The Indian pioneer Creates History for Indian Darts.
The tournament's fourth seed survived a monumental scare to progress into the next stage of the world darts championship on Sunday.
Bunting, who was a beaten semi-finalist last year, was forced all the way to a dramatic fifth leg by Poland’s Sebastian Bialecki before finally clinching a 3-2 victory at Alexandra Palace.
A Rollercoaster Encounter
Bunting began in blistering fashion, averaging an incredible 119.4 en route to powering through the opening set. The win appeared certain after landing a spectacular 160 finish to seize the second set.
Nevertheless, his form dipped, and he managed just one leg over the subsequent two sets. This enabled Bialecki – who remained unfazed even when a wasp landed on his shoulder – to square the match. Bunting steadied himself in the final set, but was still pushed to the limit before taking it 4-2.
“Competing at this venue you experience all the emotions,” Bunting stated on broadcasters. “I knew Sebastian was going to be tough and even at 2-0 he kept fighting. I am fortunate to come through that one.”
Kumar Creates Landmark Win
Bunting's second-round foe will be Nitin Kumar, who created a landmark by becoming the pioneering Indian at the championship. He defeated the Netherlands' Richard Veenstra 3-2 in a thrilling contest.
The 40-year-old, who had been defeated in all four of his prior first-round appearances, remarked this landmark win could have “created a pathway to a billion potential” darts players from India.
“I’m lost for words right now. I’m emotional, I’m happy,” Kumar expressed. “With belief, anything is possible. This was my dream ever since I watched Dennis Priestley win the World Championship.”
He concluded with a humorous prediction: “I’m sorry, ten years down the line if you have multiple players in the world championship walking on to Bollywood music, you know who started it.”
Other Opening Day Action
- Darren Beveridge: The Scottish debutant made an strong start, averaging 91.62 in a dominant 3-0 win over Belgian Dimitri Van den Bergh, who won 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 fine fettle as he comfortably defeated 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.
