India’s Bhaker, Singh miss podium in women’s 10m air pistol final at ISSF World Championships in Cairo

Manu Bhaker and Esha Singh failed to win a medal in the women’s 10m air pistol final at the ISSF World Championships. Bhaker dropped to seventh after a poor shot, while Singh finished sixth. India earned team silver

Cairo: Double Olympic-medallist Manu Bhaker and multiple Asian Games medallist Esha Singh suffered a setback in the women’s 10m air pistol final, as India’s top two shooters failed to win a medal in the ISSF World Championships here on Monday.

Manu, who won individual and mixed team bronze in 10m air pistol at the Paris Olympics, was leading during the final before a poor 8.8 on her 14th shot saw her drop from the top spot to seventh. She finished with a score of 139.5.

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Esha, who recently won World Cup gold in Ningbo, China, also failed to convert her promising start into a medal. Inconsistent shots and nerves got the better of her. After a superb 10.7, the 20-year-old faltered with an 8.4 on her 14th shot, finishing sixth in the eight-shooter final.

China’s 20-year-old Yao Qianxun claimed the biggest medal of her young career with an excellent score of 243.0. Hong Kong-China’s Ho Ching Shing (241.2) and Wei Qian (China, 221.4) took the silver and bronze medals, respectively.

India earned some consolation with a team silver. Esha (583), Manu (580), and Suruchi Inder Singh (577) aggregated 1740 points to finish second.

Both Esha and Manu entered the final after strong performances in the qualification rounds. Esha, who became the youngest-ever national champion in air pistol at the age of 13 and represented India in the women’s 25m pistol at the Paris Olympics, shot superbly to finish in fourth place in the qualification round with a score of 583. She even recorded a rare perfect-100 in the third series to enter the final with confidence.

Manu shot 580 in qualification, securing sixth place and making it to the eight-shooter final. She briefly took the lead with a superb 10.7 on the 13th shot, but the next shot, an 8.8, resulted in her elimination.

The third Indian shooter, 19-year-old Suruchi, who has won four World Cup gold medals this year to rise to No. 1, shot satisfactorily to score 577. However, in such a high-class field, it was only good enough to place her 14th among 99 shooters.

India currently stands fifth on the medals table with one gold, three silver, and two bronze. China leads the table with six gold, three silver, and two bronze medals.