Dhiraj Bommadevara clinches maiden individual World Cup gold to complete golden double in Antalya

Indian archer Dhiraj Bommadevara clinched his maiden individual Archery World Cup gold in Antalya after defeating South Korea’s Lee Woo Seok 7-3 in the final. He also won the recurve mixed team title with Kumkum Mohod earlier in the day

Antalya: Indian archer Dhiraj Bommadevara completed a memorable golden double in Antalya, stunning Paris Olympics bronze medallist Lee Woo Seok of South Korea 7-3 in a gripping final to clinch his maiden individual Archery World Cup gold, just hours after winning the recurve mixed team title with Kumkum Mohod.

The Indian Army archer, ranked 18th in the world, produced a composed display against the higher-ranked Korean to cap a breakthrough day in his career.

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Dhiraj raced to a 5-1 lead by taking the opening two sets 30-29 and 29-28 before sharing the third set 27-27.

Lee fought back in the fourth set, shooting two 10s and a nine to win it 29-27 as Dhiraj failed to register a perfect score, reducing the deficit to 3-5.

But the Indian did not let the momentum shift. Leading 5-3, Dhiraj closed out the contest in style with a flawless final set, shooting three consecutive 10s, including an X, to seal the gold medal.

Earlier in the day, Dhiraj returned to individual competition just a couple of hours after winning the recurve mixed team gold with Kumkum Mohod. He then produced a remarkable comeback to defeat Germany’s Moritz Wieser 6-4 in a hard-fought semifinal.

He slipped into the seven-ring with his second arrow and lost the opening set 26-27. The next two sets ended level at 28-28, leaving the Indian trailing 2-4 after three sets.

Facing elimination, Dhiraj responded emphatically, shooting three 10s to take the fourth set 30-27 and draw level at 4-4.

Under pressure in the deciding set, Wieser shot a wayward five with his second arrow. Dhiraj, however, held his nerve, returning scores of 9, 10 and 9 to win the set 28-23 and book his maiden World Cup final.