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Stephen Bunting edged through a tense battle to progress into the next stage of the prestigious tournament on Sunday.

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

An Eventful Match

Bunting made a flying start, posting a superb 119.4 as he powered through the first set. Victory seemed assured after checking out a spectacular 160 finish to take the second set.

Nevertheless, ‘The Bullet’ cooled off, and he managed just one leg over the next two sets. This enabled Bialecki – who remained oblivious even when a wasp settled on his shoulder – to square the match. Bunting found his rhythm in the decider, but was still pushed to the limit before taking it 4-2.

“When you are playing at Alexandra Palace you feel all the emotions,” Bunting explained to broadcasters. “I was aware Sebastian was going to be tough and even at 2-0 he never gave in. I am fortunate to come through that one.”

Kumar Makes Landmark Win

Bunting's next opponent will be Nitin Kumar, who made history by becoming the initial victor from India at the tournament. He overcame the Netherlands' Richard Veenstra 3-2 in a thrilling 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 potential” darts players from his homeland.

“I don’t know right now. I’m ecstatic, I’m happy,” Kumar stated. “Dream big, anything is possible. I’ve dreamed of this ever since I saw Dennis Priestley win the World Championship.”

He concluded with a humorous warning: “I’m sorry, ten years from now if you have eight people in the world championship entering to Bollywood music, don’t blame me.”

Additional First-Round Action

• Darren Beveridge: The Scottish debutant made an convincing start, averaging 91.62 in a comprehensive 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 beat Sweden’s Oskar Lukasiak by the identical 3-0 margin.
• Joe Cullen: The world No. 32 was in excellent touch as he comfortably defeated 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.