Chikitha Taniparthi looks to build on Asian Games gold in APL Season 2

Fresh from winning gold at the Asian Games, Telangana archer Chikitha Taniparthi is looking forward to competing on home soil as Archery Premier League Season 2 begins in Hyderabad. The league features 48 archers across six teams in a fast-paced format

Hyderabad: Building on her learning experiences from the inaugural season, Telangana archer Chikitha Taniparthi, fresh from her gold medal-winning exploits at the Asian Games, is relishing the prospect of shooting on her home soil as the second season of the Archery Premier League, the world’s only franchise-based league for archery, gets underway from Thursday in Hyderabad.

The return of the APL, after a successful first season in New Delhi, coincides with India’s sensational performance in Aichi-Nagoya that saw the country’s archery contingent emerge as the best in the field, ahead of powerhouse South Korea. Now, the country’s star archers will take centre stage from October 8 to 18 at People’s Plaza on Hyderabad’s Necklace Road.

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This time, the medal-winning archers will be involved in a completely different setting, shooting against their own national teammates in some cases and with a quicker shooting deadline, with each arrow allotted an average of just 15 seconds in a thrilling format. The APL will also witness recurve and compound archers going up against each other, another novelty that makes this franchise league stand out from regular World Archery events on the international circuit. The league also unveiled an anthem and mascot as part of the proceedings on Wednesday.

Taniparthi, who hails from Peddapalli, said she learned from watching the top archers in the APL’s first season and that it helped her refine her game.

“During the first season of APL, playing for the Chola Chiefs, I learnt a lot about managing pressure under the faster shot clock of 15 seconds per arrow as well as learning techniques from my teammates while watching them train. It helped a lot in me getting better as an archer, and played a part in winning gold medal at the Asian Games,” she said at the launch event of APL Season 2 in the city on Wednesday.

APL Director Anil Kamineni said interest in the league had only increased since the first edition this time last year.
“Each region has the kings and emperors, etc. So that’s when we said, it’s not only going to be sport; it is going to be showcasing the heritage and culture of our country,” he said.

Archery Association of India treasurer Dr Joris Paulose Ummacheril was also present at the launch event.

The six-team league has a total of 48 Indian and international archers competing across recurve and compound disciplines. Each team has a mixed squad of eight archers, with the competition following a double round-robin format.

In each match, four archers shoot two arrows per set, competing for two points per iteration. At the end of the league stage, the top four teams will advance to the semi-finals, culminating in the final on October 18.

APL Season 2 will be broadcast on Sony LIV, Doordarshan Sports and World Archery TV. Tickets are available on District by Zomato.