Stephen Bunting upsets form book to win in Berlin after early Luke Littler exit
Bunting had failed to win a match during the first eight rounds of the series.
Stephen Bunting turned his Premier League form around in stunning fashion to claim victory in Berlin after Luke Littler crashed out early.
Bunting had failed to win a match in the first eight rounds of the series but he saw off Nathan Aspinall to break his duck then eased to victory over Luke Humphries before defeating Gerwyn Price 6-5 in the final.
Littler still has a comfortable lead in the table but this was an off night for the teenager, who struggled to land doubles and fell 6-2 to Chris Dobey in his opening match.
Humphries beat Rob Cross but was out of sorts in a 6-2 loss to Bunting, while Michael van Gerwen did not even take to the stage, the Dutchman withdrawing ahead of the event with a shoulder injury.
That gave Price a bye through to the semi-finals, where he dominated a 6-2 win over Dobey to earn himself a shot at a third nightly victory.
A tense final rarely hit the heights in terms of quality, with the first six legs all going against the darts before Bunting finally held with a 96 checkout.
It was advantage Price, though, when he broke the throw again to lead 5-4, and he had two match darts but missed them both, making clear his displeasure with noises from the crowd.
Bunting made the Welshman pay by levelling the contest and then finished in style with a checkout of 107.
He told Sky Sports: “After the first win I was so relieved just to get off zero points. I’ve put a lot of work in behind the scenes, I’ve tried every week 110 per cent.
“Tonight, oh my God, I’ve won an event and I’m so happy. It’s such a special moment.
“There’s been times through the Premier League where I’ve thought, ‘Can I finish on zero points’? To get off the mark tonight and to win a night, such a special feeling.
“I know I’ve been playing well, I’ve just not got the result. Now this is going to give me huge confidence and I can’t wait to finish the campaign.”
Bunting remains bottom of the table despite the victory while Price is up to third as the series moves on to Manchester.
