Antalya (Turkey), Jun 5 (PTI) Indian archers failed to replicate their successful run from the previous World Cup as they returned empty-handed from the team events, both in compound and recurve sections, at Stage 3 of the Archery World Cup here on Thursday.
The compound teams, who had won a gold (men) and a silver (women) in Stage 2 at Shanghai last month, faltered in their respective medal hunts this time.
The men’s compound team, comprising Rishabh Yadav, multiple World Cup gold medalist Abhishek Verma, and reigning world champion Ojas Deotale, suffered a shocking first-round exit.
They went down 241-242 to lower-ranked Chinese Taipei by a solitary point in a nail-biting finish.
The women’s compound team of Madhura Dhamangaonkar, Jyothi Surekha Vennam, and Chikitha Tannemparthi also fell short in their bronze medal match.
Having been outclassed by second-seeded South Korea 234-242 in the semifinals, the third-seeded Indians lost the bronze playoff to fourth-seeded USA by a narrow 238-239 margin.
Notably, the South Korean team’s performance marks a significant shift, as they have long dominated the recurve discipline but now appear to be making a strong impact in the compound category as well — a field historically ruled by Indian and Latin American archers.
Notably, the compound event will make its Olympic debut with a single mixed team event at the Los Angeles 2028 Games.
In the recurve section, India’s struggles continued.
The fifth-seeded Indian recurve men’s team of Dhiraj Bommadevara, Atanu Das, and Parth Salunkhe once again fell short in the bronze medal match — their second straight such finish — losing 1-5 to second-seeded France. In Shanghai too, they lost out in the bronze medal playoff.
The Indian trio couldn’t take a single set from the French combination of Thomas Chirault, Baptiste Addis, and Jean-Charles Valladont, going down 55-55, 59-60, 57-59 in a tightly-contested encounter.
Earlier in the semis, the Indians had lost in straight sets to top-seeded South Korea — their frequent nemesis on the world stage.
The recurve women’s team of Deepika Kumari, Ankita Bhakat, and Simranjeet Kaur had a disappointing campaign, exiting in the quarterfinals with a 1-5 loss to the USA (54-54, 55-58, 53-56). PTI TAP ATK
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