Pravin Jadhav's medal hopes in the individual men's archery event at the Tokyo Olympics came to an end after a Round of 16 loss.
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Pravin Jadhav made smooth progress into the round of 16 in the individual men’s archery event at the Tokyo Olympics on Wednesday. He easily beat Rusian Olymipic Committee (ROC) athlete Gaslan Bazarzhapov. (Tokyo 2020 coverage)
However, he then lost out in the Round of 16 to Brady Ellison, meaning his hopes of a medal are over. Incidentally, Jadhav won the Round of 32 match 6-0 and lost the next match 6-0.
It is a classic case of what could have been. Indeed, Jadhav started the first set against Bazarzhapov with two 10’s and a 9, meaning he took 28 out of a possible 30 points. Bazarzhapov shot three 9’s and ended up with 27 points.
He did, however, start the second set brightly by posting two straight 10’s. When Jadhav responded only with two 9’s, the set looked heading to the Russian.
However, he inexplicably shot 7 on his final shot whereas Jadhav shot 10. Thus, the Indian once again took the set by a point.
The final set was elementary. Jadhav shot two 9’s but crucially bettered his opponent, who shot 8 and 7. Jadhav ended with a 10, meaning he took the set – and the match – with ease.
Things were different in the Round of 16 encounter. The fine margins caught up with him as Ellison capitalised on the few bad shots Jadhav made.
Jadhav never looked likely to come back into the match, and so it proved.
The Indian archers have yet to secure a medal in the Games thus far. Of course, the only events that have been completed in the sport is the mixed team and men’s team event.
In both events, India were knocked out by heavyweights South Korea, who unsurprisingly went on to claim the gold medal both times.
The Tokyo Olympics, delayed by a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, is now up and running. The Games have not been without their share of controversies, however.
The event is happening despite plenty of protests from the Japanese people against it. And the angst is not without reason. Tokyo is currently in a state of emergency due to a rise in COVID cases.
The Games will by and large be played out in the absence of fans, always a major psychological blow to athletes. There’s also been a number of cases reported in the Olympic village itself.
Nevertheless, the Games remain an event that many around the world will be keen to watch. From July 23 to August 8, many will be hooked onto their televisions to follow the events.
