Talented archer Atanu Das provided a silver lining on a disappointing day for the Indians by entering the pre-quarterfinals of the Individual Recurve event at the Rio Olympics, here onTuesday.
Das first blanked Jit Bahadur Muktan of Nepal 6-0 in the round of 32 encounter and then kept his composure to prevail over Cuban Adrian Andres Puentes Perez 6-4 in a thrilling clash.
However the road ahead is full of challenges for the 24-year old from Kolkata as he is now up against South Korean archer and a former world No 5 lee Seung-Yun.
lee was a part of the victorious South Korean outfit that won gold in the team Recurve event at the ongoing Games.
The pre-quarterfinal is scheduled to be held on August 12.
What was impressive about Atanu was the manner in which he held his nerve during his last shot in the fifth and final set.
The score was 19-18 and a '10 pointer' would have ensured his place in the last eight even before his opponent had aimed for his final strike.
Atanu did not disappoint as he hit the 'Bulls Eye' taking an unassailable lead and winning the final set 29-28.
The score in his favour was 28-26 29-26 26-27 27-28 29-28 in favour of the Kolkatan.
Earlier, Archer Atanu Das continued his impressive progress as he blanked Nepalese rival Muktan Jitbahadur to enter the last 16 of the men's individual elimination round.
Considered as a virtual no-hoper in the Indian contingent, Das kept his hopes alive with a clinically efficient show against another South Asian archer whom he beat in straight three sets to score a 6-0 victory.
Das won the three sets 29-26, 29-24, 30-26 and shot seven 10s as compared to his rival's 2.
Overall his domination is evident from a scoreline of 88-76.
Das is scheduled to play his next match for a place in the last eight later today.
He had shown fine composure and skill to bounce back from a poor start in his maiden Olympics to finish fifth in the qualification round.
Das is the lone male member in the Indian archery team and will compete only in the individual section as the men's team had failed to qualify from the World Championship.