Indian shooters Manu Bhaker and Yashaswini Singh Deswal failed to make the women's 10m air pistol final on Sunday (July 25).
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The mixed showing for Indian shooters at the Tokyo Olympics continued on Sunday (July 25) as Manu Bhaker and Yashaswini Singh Deswal failed to make the women’s 10m air pistol final. (Tokyo 2020 full coverage)
Bhaker was in with a shot at one point, but ended up finishing 12th. Deswal started poorly but a late rally put her within touching distance of the top 8. However, she would finish 13th in the standings.
Bhaker was hampered severely by a break in play due to a faulty pistol. What the exact issue with the weapon was remains unclear as of now.
However, the five minute delay caused due to it clearly hurt Bhaker. She was up as high as second at one point before the pistol started giving issues.
Once her weapon was sorted out, she was unable to capture the momentum she had. Despite going into the final series with a chance of making the top 8, both Bhaker and Deswal could not go high enough in the standings.
Bhaker could still win a medal in the mixed team event, where she is paired with Saurabh Chaudhary.
Heading into the Games, there was plenty of hope from the shooting contingent. The team contained a mix of youthful prospects and veterans who have big-game experience.
However, so far the sport has been quite the mixed bag for India. The 10m air rifle event saw medal contenders Apurvi Chandela and Elavenil Valarivan crash out.
There was even more heartbreak in store as Abhishek Verma crashed out in the 10m air pistol. Saurabh Chaudhary gave 1.3 billion Indians plenty to smile as he topped the qualifying to move into the medal round.
But, in the medal stage, he finished seventh as the pressure of the situation got to him.
India have won a medal at Tokyo thanks to weightlifter Mirabai Chanu. She won a silver medal on Saturday, thus becoming the first Indian medalist on the opening day of the Games.
The Tokyo Olympics, which was 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.
