The Merseyside thrower Weathers Major Test while The Indian pioneer Secures History for India.
Stephen Bunting survived a monumental scare to move into the second round of the prestigious tournament on the opening weekend.
The Merseysider, who reached losing semi-finalist last year, was taken all the way to a dramatic fifth leg by Polish qualifier Sebastian Bialecki before finally clinching a 3-2 victory at Alexandra Palace.
A Rollercoaster Match
Bunting stormed out of the blocks, posting a superb 119.4 en route to powering through the first set. He looked in total control after landing a spectacular 160 finish to seize the second set.
Nevertheless, ‘The Bullet’ cooled off, and he won just one leg over the subsequent two sets. This let Bialecki – who remained oblivious even when a wasp landed on his shoulder – to draw level. Bunting found his rhythm in the final set, but was still taken to the wire before taking it 4-2.
“Competing at Alexandra Palace you go through all the emotions,” Bunting told broadcasters. “I knew Sebastian was going to be a challenge and even at 2-0 he never surrendered. I am fortunate to get away with that one.”
Kumar Secures Historic Victory
Bunting's next opponent will be 'The Royal Bengal', who created a landmark by becoming the initial victor from India at the championship. He overcame Dutchman Richard Veenstra 3-2 in a thrilling contest.
The veteran player, who had been defeated in all four of his previous first-round matches, implied this breakthrough could have “opened the floodgates to a billion” darts players from his homeland.
“I’m lost for words today. I’m emotional, I’m happy,” Kumar expressed. “With belief, anything is achievable. This was my dream ever since I saw Dennis Priestley win the World Championship.”
He added with a light-hearted warning: “I’m sorry, a decade from now if you have eight people in the world championship entering to Indian film songs, don’t blame me.”
Further First-Round Action
- Darren Beveridge: The Scotland's debutant made an convincing start, averaging 91.62 in a dominant 3-0 win over Belgian Dimitri Van den Bergh, who managed just one leg.
- Jonny Tata: Another first-timer, from New Zealand, dashed the hopes of world No. 27 Ritchie Edhouse with a commanding 3-0 victory.
- Dom Taylor: The other newcomer defeated 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: Concluded the evening's play with a 3-1 victory over American Stowe Buntz.
