Nagoya, Sep 23 A day that promised plenty delivered precious little for India at the Asian Games shooting range. While a star-studded women’s 10m air pistol trio failed to convert its enormous promise into a medal, the men’s and women’s skeet teams stepped in to salvage some pride with bronze medals here on Wednesday.
With double Olympic medallist Manu Bhaker, Esha Singh and Suruchi Inder Singh — three of the world’s leading shooters — in the line-up, India had entered the event with perhaps its strongest medal expectations in shooting.
Instead, Esha and Suruchi failed to make the final, while Manu, the only Indian to survive qualification, struggled under the glare of expectation and finished fifth.
The two team bronzes — in the men’s and women’s skeet events — eventually took India’s shooting tally to seven medals, comprising four silver and three bronze. However, the day will be remembered more for what slipped away than what was won.
The women’s 10m air pistol event, on paper, had looked almost tailor-made for India. Manu, Esha and Suruchi possess the pedigree and firepower to overwhelm the strongest opposition on their day. Wednesday, however, was emphatically not that day.
Esha’s 572 placed her 15th in qualification, a score well below the standard expected of a shooter of her calibre, while multiple World Cup gold medallist Suruchi managed 568 to finish outside the eight-shooter final. Their early exits left Manu carrying India’s medal hopes alone.
Even Manu had to fight hard to make the cut. After a sluggish start, she found her rhythm sufficiently to finish third in qualification with 579. South Korea’s Choo Gaeun, meanwhile, was in a different league, smashing the qualification Games record with 582, while China’s Jiang Ranxin qualified second.
If Manu’s qualification offered some hope of a turnaround, the final quickly extinguished it.
The double Olympic medallist never found the consistency that has made her one of India’s most recognisable shooting stars. Her eighth shot, an 8.9, was the low point of a 24-shot final in which the good scores were too few and the mistakes too frequent.
Apart from a 10.8 and a 10.6, Manu’s series was littered with 9.2s, 9.9s and other scores that left her chasing the leaders rather than challenging them.
Choo, by contrast, produced a commanding performance to win gold with 246.3 and an Asian record. China’s Shen Yiyao took silver with 241.3, while Manu was eliminated in fifth place with 181.1.
The team event provided another bitter reminder of how narrow the margins can be. India and Vietnam finished tied on 1719, but Vietnam took bronze on the inner-10 count, with 46 shots closest to the centre against India’s 44.
For a country that had arrived with such formidable individual firepower, fourth place in the team event was a distinctly underwhelming return.
It also marked a sharp reversal from the previous Asian Games in Hangzhou in 2023, where India had enjoyed a memorable one-two finish in the individual event, with Palak Gulia winning gold and Esha taking silver. India had also claimed team silver.
That contrast is difficult to ignore and will inevitably bring renewed scrutiny to the country’s shooting system — from preparation and coaching to selection policies.
India has in recent times left out shooters with proven international records from its Asian Games squads, decisions that have repeatedly raised questions over whether domestic selection criteria are adequately rewarding international performance and current form.
Esha and Suruchi chose not to dwell publicly on what had gone wrong. Manu, however, was visibly disappointed and offered a glimpse into the personal challenges behind her performance.
“I genuinely tried my best and really feel that my performance was significantly better than what I have been facing, the challenges I’ve been facing in my training in Japan,” she said.
There was also an unmistakable emotional undercurrent to Manu’s words. Her coach Jaspal Rana, who guided her through the most successful phase of her career, died in June this year.
The absence of the legendary shooter-turned-coach clearly remains a painful reality for Manu as she negotiates life and competition without the man who guided her to twin Olympic medals in Paris.
“I feel really sorry that I was not able to make it to the podium and I really hope that I’ll be able to do better,” she added.
There is still another opportunity for redemption. Manu will return to the range for the 25m pistol event alongside Esha and 2018 Asian Games gold medallist Rahi Sarnobat.
But, after Wednesday’s missed opportunity, the task is now considerably harder. India had arrived at the Games hoping to better its shooting haul from Hangzhou, where it won seven gold, nine silver and six bronze. It would be a miracle if they even match it in Nagoya.
(PTI News)
