Stephen Bunting names one World Darts Championship underdog who ‘no person’ needed to attract
EXCLUSIVE Darts star Stephen Bunting has named one player who nobody wanted to draw in the opening round of the Paddy Power PDC World Darts Championship
Stephen Bunting survived a first-round scare to beat Sebastian Bialecki in the opening round of the Paddy Power PDC World Darts Championship this week.
However, the fan favourite, 40, from Liverpool, admitted he was counting his lucky stars not to be drawn against one player, who “nobody wanted to draw” at the Ally Pally. Speaking to Daily Star Sport , via DreamVegas, the World No.4 said: “There are quite a few who’ve impressed me.
‘If you asked me who I’d like to play, I’d probably say a few easier ones to get me through the first two rounds – but unfortunately, that can’t happen.
“You’ve got the likes of Gian van Veen, who’s coming in as a European champion with a lot of confidence.
“Ryan Searle has been playing well. Beau Greaves, who I’ve spoken about before in earlier interviews – she’s a fantastic player and no one wants to draw her when the names come out!”
Greaves, 21, starts her World Championship campaign on Friday (19 December) in an all-star clash with World Cup of Darts winner Daryl Gurney.
The Doncaster-born thrower has been sweeping up titles in the women’s ranks – and she made her Grand Slam of Darts debut last month, but came unstuck in the group stage.
She will be hoping to become the second-ever woman to win a game at the famous venue, following in the footsteps of Fallon Sherrock, who beat Ted Evetts and Mensur Suljović back in 2020.
However, when it came to naming who the favourite for the World Championships he had three names.
Bunting added: “You’ve got your top three in the world – Luke Littler, Luke Humphries, and Michael van Gerwen.
“So, yeah, there are a lot of people there with chances to win the World Championship, but, as I said, there can only be one.
“My focus is making sure I leave no stone unturned, turn up as the best version of myself, and make it as hard as possible for anyone I play.”
