Jr Shooting World Cup: Another double podium for India at Suhl

New Delhi, May 25 Both Indian teams in the 10m air rifle mixed team event of the International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) Junior World Cup in Suhl, won medals, silver and bronze respectively, to land India a second double podium finish in the tournament in two days on Sunday.

Naraen Pranav and Khyaty Chaudhary won silver while Himanshu and Shambhavi Kshirsagar bagged bronze, as India’s medal tally reached double figures (two gold, four silver, four bronze) with two more finals coming up on the final day on Monday (May 26).

The pair of Khyaty and Naraen shot 631.0 in the 38-team qualifying round to finish second and earn a shot at gold against the crack Chinese pair of Huang Yuting (Olympic champion in the event, double Olympic medallist and senior air rifle world champion) and Huang Liwanlin (the junior air rifle world champion), who topped the field with a combined 632.6.

They fought valiantly in the final coming back to level things back every time the Chinese threatened to pull away and did so right till the end over 14 series of single shots, going into the 15th series tied honourably at 14 points apiece. The Chinese won the 15th by 0.5 to get to 16 points first and take gold.

Himanshu and Shambhavi, who had finished fourth in qualifying with 629.5 to make the bronze medal match, were down 1-7 at one stage against the American pair of Griffin Lake and Elijah Spencer.

With a medal threatening to slip away, they responded with a ferocity that could not bring a response from the Americans and, within no time, reversed the tide to go 13-7 up. The Americans could win just one more series as the Indians sealed it 17-9 to win comfortably in the end.

Shambhavi and Ojasvi Thakur had finished 1-2 in the women’s air rifle on Saturday, to give India their first double podium of the tournament.

The Trap finals were also slated for later in the day on Sunday, however no Indian would be featuring in them. The women had already finished outside the top six cut while the men were also far below the cut line.

Trap scores:

Trap Women Junior: Sabeera Haris 109 (10th), Bhavya Tripathi 108 (12th), Shreshtha Sisodiya 108 (14th), Nilaa Rajaa Balu 102 (21st), Anthra Rajsekar 95 (30th)

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