'The Bullet' Survives Huge Fright as Nitin Kumar Makes History for India.
The tournament's fourth seed survived a monumental scare to progress into the next stage of the world darts championship on Sunday.
'The Bullet', who was a beaten semi-finalist last year, was pushed all the way to a final-set shootout by Poland’s Sebastian Bialecki before securing a hard-fought victory at the iconic Ally Pally venue.
A Turbulent Battle
Bunting made a flying start, averaging an incredible 119.4 as he powered through the opening set. Victory seemed assured after landing a spectacular 160 finish to take the second set.
However, his momentum stalled, and he won just one leg over the next two sets. This let Bialecki – who remained unfazed even when a wasp landed on his shoulder – to draw level. Bunting steadied himself in the decider, but was still pushed to the limit before securing it 4-2.
“Performing at this venue you feel all the feelings,” Bunting told Sky Sports. “I knew Sebastian was going to be difficult and even at 2-0 he never gave in. I am lucky to come through that one.”
Kumar Secures Landmark Win
Bunting's next opponent will be Nitin Kumar, who achieved a first by becoming the pioneering Indian at the event. He defeated the Netherlands' Richard Veenstra 3-2 in a closely-fought contest.
The veteran player, who had been defeated in all four of his previous first-round matches, implied this breakthrough could have “created a pathway to a billion potential” darts players from his homeland.
“Words fail me right now. I’m overwhelmed, I’m happy,” said Kumar. “If you dream it, anything is achievable. I’ve dreamed of this ever since I saw Dennis Priestley win the World Championship.”
He added 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, you know who started it.”
Further First-Round Results
- Darren Beveridge: The Scotland's debutant made an strong start, averaging 91.62 in a one-sided 3-0 win over Belgian Dimitri Van den Bergh, who managed just one leg.
- Jonny Tata: Another debutant, from New Zealand, ended 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 identical 3-0 scoreline.
- Joe Cullen: The world No. 32 was in good form as he eased past Bradley Brooks 3-0.
- Wesley Plaisier: The Dutch player beat Germany’s Lukas Wenig 3-1.
- James Hurrell: Concluded the evening's play with a 3-1 victory over America’s Stowe Buntz.
