Asia Cup Stage 1: Indian archers win two bronze

Indian archers bagged two bronze medals and also stormed into the finals of the men’s recurve and women’s compound team events on the second day of the Asia Cup World Ranking Tournament Stage 1 here on Wednesday.

India also confirmed three medals in the individual section, but it came with the embarrassment for the recurve men, where none of the four archers could reach the medal rounds in a sharp fall from the previous edition’s top-two finish by Vishnu Choudhary and Rahul.

The women’s compound team improved on its bronze from the previous edition by reaching the final.

The trio of Chikitha Taniparthi, Raj Kaur and Tejal Salve edged past local favourites Kanyavee Maneesombatkul, Kanoknapus Kaewchomphu and Chaniddapa Thanaratpitinan 229-226 in a closely-fought semifinal to set up a summit clash against third-seeded Kazakhstan.

However, there was some disappointment in the men’s compound section, where India fielded one of their most experienced combinations.

Despite topping the qualification round with Indian archers sweeping the top four spots, the team failed to defend its title and had to settle for a bronze.

The trio of Rajat Chauhan, Rishabh Yadav and Uday Kamboj squandered a strong five-point lead to lose 233-234 to Vietnam in the semifinals.

India began with a perfect opening end but faltered in the second, managing 57 while Vietnam’s Cong Duc Dang, Ngoc Tu Pham and Xuan Huong Tran shot a perfect 60 to cut the deficit.

The Vietnamese continued their surge with another perfect 60 in the third end to overturn the deficit and take a one-point lead.

Both teams shot 59 in the final end, sealing India’s narrow defeat.

The Indians, however, bounced back to beat Bhutan 234-232 in the bronze medal match.

In the recurve section, India entered the men’s team final with a 5-1 win over Malaysia. The top-seeded trio of Devaang Gupta, Sukhchain Singh and Juyel Sarkar won comfortably without dropping a set.

India took the opening set 53-50 and edged the second 53-52 in a low-scoring contest.

Both teams improved in the third set, with India shooting four 10s, but it ended in a 56-all tie, which was just enough to send India into the final, where they will meet third-seeded Kazakhstan.

The women’s recurve team also signed off with a bronze medal, beating Malaysia 5-1, having missing out on a podium finish in the previous edition at the same venue.

The trio of Ruma Biswas, Kirti and Ridhi Phor delivered a dominant performance and dropped just one point in the opening set to win 59-56, before extending their lead with a 53-50 win in the second.

The third set ended 52-52, confirming the bronze.

Compound dominance, recurve men flop show: Later in the afternoon session that catered to individual rounds, India had a mixed outing.

In the men’s compound, Chauhan, Jawkar and Kamboj overcame the disappointment of team showing by progressing to the medal matches and kept alive hopes of a clean sweep.

Jawkar edged past Chauhan 149-148 in a tight semifinal, while Kamboj defeated local favourite Peerawat Rattanapongkiat 147-145.

Jawkar and Kamboj will now clash for gold, with Chauhan set to compete for bronze.

Ridhi kept India’s campaign alive in women’s recurve, storming into the final to stay in contention for her maiden international individual gold.

The 24-year-old beat Malaysia’s Xing Lei Joey Tan in straight sets, dropping just one point in the opening set (29-26) before taking control with a 27-23 second set.

She wrapped up the contest comfortably in the third. The Haryana archer will face Mongolia’s Oyun-Erdene Baasandorj in the final.

In sharp contrast, the men’s recurve campaign ended in disappointment.

Eighth seed Sukhchain Singh lost in straight sets to neutral athlete and Russian-born Kirill Batuev, who shot six 10s from nine arrows to win 29-28, 29-28, 28-26.

Devaang Gupta put up a fight before going down 4-6 to Malaysia’s Chong Evan Rich in a closely fought five-setter.

In women’s compound, Tejal Salve remained the lone Indian in contention for a medal, entering the bronze playoff after losing her semifinal 144-147 to top seed Arina Cherkezova, a neutral athlete originally from Russia.

The other Indians — Chikitha Raj Kaur and Swati Dudhwal — exited in the pre-quarterfinals.