Stephen Bunting Endures Huge Test as Nitin Kumar Makes A Landmark for India.
The tournament's fourth seed narrowly avoided an early exit to progress into the second round of the world darts championship on Sunday.
Bunting, who reached beaten semi-finalist last year, was forced all the way to a final-set shootout by Polish qualifier Sebastian Bialecki before securing a 3-2 victory at the iconic Ally Pally venue.
A Rollercoaster Encounter
Bunting made a flying start, posting a superb 119.4 as he powered through the first set. The win appeared certain after hitting a spectacular 160 finish to seize the second set.
However, his form dipped, and he managed just one leg over the subsequent two sets. This allowed Bialecki – who remained oblivious even when a wasp settled on his shoulder – to pull back. Bunting found his rhythm in the decider, but was still pushed to the limit before securing it 4-2.
“When you are playing at this venue you feel all the feelings,” Bunting told broadcasters. “I knew Sebastian was going to be tough and even at 2-0 he never gave in. I am lucky to get away with that one.”
Kumar Secures Groundbreaking Victory
Bunting's second-round foe will be Nitin Kumar, who created a landmark by becoming the first Indian winner at the championship. He overcame the Netherlands' Richard Veenstra 3-2 in a closely-fought match.
The veteran player, who had been defeated in all four of his previous first-round appearances, implied this breakthrough could have “created a pathway to a billion” darts players from his homeland.
“I don’t know today. I’m overwhelmed, I’m happy,” said Kumar. “If you dream it, anything is possible. I’ve dreamed of this ever since I saw Dennis Priestley win the World Championship.”
He joked with a light-hearted prediction: “I’m sorry, a decade from now if you have multiple players in the world championship walking on to Indian film songs, you know who started it.”
Additional First-Round Action
- Darren Beveridge: The Scotland's debutant made an convincing start, averaging 91.62 in a comprehensive 3-0 win over Belgium's 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 fellow newcomer defeated Sweden’s Oskar Lukasiak by the same 3-0 scoreline.
- Joe Cullen: The world No. 32 was in fine fettle 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 American Stowe Buntz.
