Daijiworld Media Network – Shanghai
Shanghai, May 7: India secured its first medal at the Archery World Cup Stage 2 after the women’s recurve team produced a stunning semifinal victory over record 10-time Olympic champions South Korea on Thursday. In contrast, the Indian men’s recurve team suffered an early exit after losing to Bangladesh in the opening round.
The Indian women’s trio of Deepika Kumari, Ankita Bhakat and teenage archer Kumkum Mohod delivered a composed performance to defeat South Korea 5-1 in the semifinals and book a place in the gold medal clash against second-seeded China on Sunday.
The Indian team started strongly in the semifinal, scoring four perfect 10s from six arrows to comfortably win the opening set 58-55. The Korean side appeared unsettled from the beginning.
India maintained its consistency in the second set despite one stray 8, tying 56-56 and extending the lead to 3-1. In the third set, the Indian trio once again produced a solid score of 58, while Korea managed only 56 under pressure, handing India a memorable straight-sets victory.
However, South Korea fielded a relatively inexperienced squad as part of preparations for the upcoming Asian Games in Japan. The team featured debutants Lee Yunji and Oh Yejin, while reigning world champion Kang Chaeyoung was the only senior archer in the lineup. Olympic stars An San and Lim Sihyeon were absent from the squad.
Earlier in the tournament, the Indian women recovered from a slow start to defeat Uzbekistan 6-2 in the opening round with set scores of 53-56, 57-54, 55-54 and 55-51.
Their quarterfinal against Vietnam proved to be a tougher contest as India edged out the opponents 5-4 in a tense shoot-off. After losing the opening set, the Indians bounced back strongly to level the match before eventually sealing victory with a composed 28-25 performance in the shoot-off.
Meanwhile, the Indian men’s recurve team comprising Tarundeep Rai, Dhiraj Bommadevara and Yashdeep Bhoge endured a disappointing campaign, losing 2-6 to Bangladesh without winning a single set.
India struggled from the outset, scoring 52 in the opening set due to three 8s, while Bangladesh posted 55 to take an early lead. The Indian trio failed to regain momentum in the following sets, managing only tied scores before Bangladesh finished strongly with a decisive 57 in the final set to seal the victory.
Bangladesh archers Abdur Rahman Alif, Ram Krishna Saha and Mohammed Mishad Prodhan maintained composure throughout the contest and capitalised on India’s inconsistency to secure the upset win.