Stephen Bunting AND Chris Dobey will come back to World Darts Series and Premier League Darts this year and have already shown on Bahrain Dart Masters that they are worthy of their choices.
Bunting was up against Nitin Kumar, who has previously played at the World Darts Championship several times and is a top Indian player. He also lives in the Middle East, so he won’t have to travel far back home.
It was an easy win for “The Bullet,” who became a true fan favorite before returning to the World Series. He showed no rust from the World Cup as his double, especially against the 6-2 win, was devastating.
He shot 6/8 in the outside ring and high checks of 145 and 122 as he came through. We’ll also get a draw, which we’ll probably have a few times in the Premier League as he now faces Chris Dobey.
Dobey is also gaining new status with his selection and return to the Premier League after a year away and he too has made the most of the situation. He was even more decisive when he defeated Basem Mahmood.
Mahmood has proven to be a top-class operator in the past and is a staple of Bahrain’s Darts World Cup team. But today there was no such heroism in front of the home crowd when the first whitewash was recorded. He was defeated 6-0 by “Hollywood”, who, like his next opponent in Bunting, performed excellently in doubles.
He went 6/8 for the win and his four 180s also showed he was skilled at both scoring and doubles. Two unique shows in Sakhir so far.
Next up will be the final match, with Luke Humphries and Luke Littler opening their Bahrain accounts before Peter Wright and Nathan Aspinall finish the evening.
