New Delhi: India’s 10m air rifle mixed team pair of Rudrankksh Patil and Arya Rajesh Borse, bagged a silver medal, going down to the crack Chinese pairing of Wang Zifei and Song Buhan 9-17 in the gold medal match, on the penultimate day of competitions at the ISSF World Cup Rifle/Pistol/Shotgun Argentina 2025.
With four gold medals, two silver, and one bronze medal, India are now second on the medal tally behind China, who have a couple of bronzes more, in the International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) event.
In the 16-team 10m air rifle mixed team event, Indians made both the medal rounds with Rudrankksh, fresh from an individual air rifle gold, and Arya, totaling 630.5 to finish second. The Chinese pair topped the qualifications as well. The second Indian pair of Arjun Babuta and R. Narmada Nithin also made the bronze medal match with a tally of 629.6, finishing fourth behind local hopes Marcelo Gutierrez and Fernanda Russo.
Gutierrez, who had won a very popular bronze in the men’s air rifle, Argentina’s only medal of the World Cup thus far, doubled his and his nation’s tally, taking the Indians down along with Fernanda Russo. The score line, after the Indians had made a bright 6-0 start, read 13-17 in the host nation’s favour.
In the gold medal match-up, the Indians did not do much wrong, but the Chinese pair shot at a very high level, looking in control from the beginning, to take the match 17-9.
Rudrankksh and Arya had their best phase from the ninth to the 12th single-shot series, of which they won three in a row and drew the fourth, but they had left too much to cover.
Over at the Shotgun ranges, the women’s trap squad could not make the medal rounds. Neeru was the best Indian on show with a tally of 115, giving her 12th place. Pragati Dubey was 16th with 110 while Bhavya Tripathi was 23rd with 106.
In the men’s trap, veteran Zoravar Singh Sandhu had raised a glimmer with a 25 in his fifth and final round, giving him a total of 119. However, he would have to win a multi-way shoot-off for a single final spot. Prithviraj Tondaiman (117) and Lakshay Sheoran (115) finished further down the standings.
(IANS)
