The Merseyside thrower Survives Major Test while Nitin Kumar Makes A Landmark for India.

Stephen Bunting narrowly avoided an early exit to progress into the second round of the prestigious tournament on the opening weekend.

'The Bullet', who reached losing semi-finalist last year, was taken all the way to a deciding tie-breaker by Poland’s Sebastian Bialecki before finally clinching a 3-2 victory at Alexandra Palace.

An Eventful Encounter

Bunting began in blistering fashion, posting a superb 119.4 as he powered through the opening set. Victory seemed assured after checking out a spectacular 160 finish to take the second set.

Nevertheless, his form dipped, and he won 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 found his rhythm in the decider, but was still pushed to the limit before taking it 4-2.

“Competing at this venue you experience all the emotions,” Bunting explained to Sky Sports. “I was aware Sebastian was going to be a challenge and even at 2-0 he never surrendered. I am lucky to come through that one.”

Kumar Makes Historic Victory

Bunting's second-round foe will be Nitin Kumar, who made history by becoming the first Indian winner at the tournament. He overcame the Netherlands' Richard Veenstra 3-2 in a closely-fought match.

The 40-year-old, who had lost in all four of his previous first-round appearances, remarked this landmark win could have “created a pathway to a billion potential” darts players from his homeland.

“I’m lost for words today. I’m emotional, I’m thrilled,” Kumar stated. “Dream big, anything is achievable. This was my dream ever since I watched Dennis Priestley win the World Championship.”

He added with a humorous warning: “I’m sorry, a decade down the line if you have eight people in the world championship walking on to Indian film songs, you know who started it.”

Other First-Round Results

• Darren Beveridge: The Scotland's debutant made an impressive start, averaging 91.62 in a one-sided 3-0 win over Belgium's Dimitri Van den Bergh, who managed 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 beat Sweden’s Oskar Lukasiak by the same 3-0 margin.
• Joe Cullen: The world No. 32 was in excellent touch as he comfortably defeated Bradley Brooks 3-0.
• Wesley Plaisier: The Dutchman overcame Germany’s Lukas Wenig 3-1.
• James Hurrell: Concluded the evening's play with a 3-1 victory over American Stowe Buntz.