India’s archery squad for the Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, was finalised on Monday after a demanding three-day selection trial in Sonepat, Haryana. The biggest headline from the trials was the omission of four-time Olympian Deepika Kumari, who failed to secure a place in the women’s recurve team for the continental event.
Former India No. 1 Atanu Das and decorated compound archer Abhishek Verma also missed out on the Asian Games squad after disappointing performances in the selection trials conducted at the SAI Centre.
The trials, held in difficult windy conditions, were used to select India’s teams for the Asian Games as well as the upcoming third and fourth stages of the Archery World Cup.
While Deepika missed the Asian Games cut, she managed to retain her place in the Indian squad for the World Cup stages as the fourth-ranked recurve archer.
Teenagers Kirti Sharma and Kumkum Mohod emerged as the biggest positives from the trials in the women’s recurve category. Nineteen-year-old Kirti topped the standings with 13.5 points, while Maharashtra’s Kumkum finished second.
Olympian Ankita Bhakat clinched the third and final Asian Games berth after edging past Deepika Kumari in a shoot-off. Both archers had finished level on 10.75 points after three rounds spread across three days before Ankita held her nerve in the decider.
This will be the second consecutive Asian Games that Deepika will miss after also failing to make the squad for the Hangzhou Games in 2022 following the birth of her daughter.
Despite being one of India’s most decorated archers with multiple World Cup medals and a Commonwealth Games title, Deepika is yet to win an individual medal at the Asian Games. Her best finish remains the women’s team bronze medal from the 2010 Guangzhou Games.
KIRTI SHARMA’S RAPID RISE
Kirti Sharma’s rise through the ranks has been one of the standout stories from the trials.
The young archer from Haryana’s Jind district is the daughter of an iron gate welder and was picked during talent scouting trials conducted by coach Udham Singh in 2022 before being inducted into the SAI Hazaribagh centre in Jharkhand.
Kirti made her India debut earlier this year at the Asia Cup in Bangkok and has since represented the country in three Asia Cup events. Earlier this season, she won a team bronze medal alongside Ridhi Phor and Ruma Biswas.
She also impressed throughout the elimination rounds in Sonepat, defeating experienced names like Ankita Bhakat and Ridhi Phor on her way to topping the trials.
“We had given out an advertisement and she came all the way from Haryana for the trials. She has been training with us for the last five years,” coach Udham Singh told PTI after the trials.
By virtue of Kirti finishing on top, Singh will travel with the Indian women’s recurve team as coach for the Asian Games.
Backing the young squad, Singh said India needed to trust the next generation after years of relying on experienced names.
“We have seen what India achieved with experienced archers at the Olympics. Now youngsters should get their chance. They have come through an extreme grind and defeated big names in tough windy conditions. I’m confident they will do well,” he said.
DHIRAJ BOMMADEVARA DOMINATES MEN’S RECURVE
In the men’s recurve section, Dhiraj Bommadevara dominated the trials from start to finish and secured the top spot with 15.5 points.
Neeraj Chauhan finished second with 12.25 points, while Yashdeep Bhoge sealed the third Asian Games berth with 11 points.
Atanu Das narrowly missed qualification by just one point but retained his place in the Indian setup for the World Cup stages as the fourth-ranked archer.
India’s recurve men’s team will hope to bounce back strongly after a disappointing World Cup outing earlier this month, where Dhiraj and Yashdeep suffered a first-round exit against Bangladesh.
JYOTHI LEADS NEW-LOOK COMPOUND TEAM
India’s compound squad, which swept all five gold medals at the Hangzhou Asian Games, will travel to Japan with a relatively fresh-looking lineup.
Veteran Jyothi Surekha Vennam remains the only experienced name in the women’s compound side after topping the trials with 15.5 points despite struggling for rhythm in recent months.
Chikitha Taniparthi and teenager Prithika Pradeep completed the women’s compound team.
The men’s compound section also produced major surprises.
Multiple Asian Games medallist Abhishek Verma endured a disastrous campaign and finished last among the top eight archers.
India’s top compound archer and world No. 7 Rishabh Yadav also missed out on Asian Games qualification after finishing fourth behind Andhra Pradesh’s Thirumuru Ganesh Mani Ratnam.
World University Games champion Sahil Jadhav continued his impressive form by topping the men’s compound trials with 15.25 points.
Kushal Dalal finished second with 12.5 points, while Thirumuru grabbed the third and final Asian Games berth with 10.75 points.
Expectations will once again be high from India’s compound archers after their historic golden sweep in Hangzhou. However, the challenge could be tougher this time around with a younger squad and no foreign coach in place after legendary Italian Sergio Pagni joined the South Korean setup.
INDIA’S ARCHERY SQUAD FOR ASIAN GAMES
Recurve men: Dhiraj Bommadevara, Neeraj Chauhan, Yashdeep Bhoge, Atanu Das
Recurve women: Kirti Sharma, Kumkum Mohod, Ankita Bhakat, Deepika Kumari
Compound men: Sahil Jadhav, Kushal Dalal, Thirumuru Ganesh Mani Ratnam, Rishabh Yadav
Compound women: Jyothi Surekha Vennam, Chikitha Taniparthi, Prithika Pradeep, Parneet Kaur
– Ends
