The Merseyside thrower Survives Significant Test while 'The Royal Bengal' Makes A Landmark for India.

The tournament's fourth seed edged through a tense battle to advance into the next stage of the world darts championship on Sunday.

Bunting, who was a losing semi-finalist last year, was forced all the way to a final-set shootout by Polish qualifier Sebastian Bialecki before securing a hard-fought victory at Alexandra Palace.

A Rollercoaster Encounter

Bunting made a flying start, posting a superb 119.4 en route to powering through the first set. He looked in total control after hitting a spectacular 160 finish to seize the second set.

Nevertheless, ‘The Bullet’ cooled off, and he managed just one leg over the subsequent two sets. This let Bialecki – who remained oblivious even when a wasp settled on his shoulder – to pull back. Bunting steadied himself in the decider, but was still taken to the wire before taking it 4-2.

“Competing at Alexandra Palace you experience all the emotions,” Bunting told Sky Sports. “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 Win

Bunting's second-round foe will be 'The Royal Bengal', who created a landmark by becoming the first Indian winner at the event. He beat the Netherlands' Richard Veenstra 3-2 in a closely-fought contest.

The veteran player, who had been defeated in all four of his prior first-round matches, implied this landmark win could have “created a pathway to a billion” darts players from his homeland.

“Words fail me at this moment. I’m overwhelmed, I’m delighted,” Kumar stated. “Dream big, anything is possible. This was my dream ever since I watched Dennis Priestley win the World Championship.”

He joked with a light-hearted warning: “I’m sorry, ten years in the future if you have eight people in the world championship walking on to Bollywood music, don’t blame me.”

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 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 defeated Sweden’s Oskar Lukasiak by the same 3-0 margin.
• Joe Cullen: The world No. 32 was in good form as he eased past Bradley Brooks 3-0.
• Wesley Plaisier: The Dutchman beat Germany’s Lukas Wenig 3-1.
• James Hurrell: Concluded the evening's play with a 3-1 victory over America’s Stowe Buntz.