India top six events in Asia Cup Stage 1 qualifiers as Compound men dominate

Indias young recurve archers rose to the occasion while the seasoned compound men stamped their authority as the country topped qualification in six events at the Asia Cup World Ranking Tournament Stage 1 here on TuesdayFielding a secondstring side in the absence of several top names India made a strong start to the new international season by finishing on top in mens compound individual and team events mens recurve team womens compound team and both recurve and compound mixed team eventsThe recurve mens trio of Devaang Gupta Sukhchain Singh and Juyel Sarkar led the charge powering India to the top seeding in the team event and a direct entry into the quarterfinals where they will face the winners of the tie between Bhutan No 9 and Mongolia No 8 China and Kazakhstan finished second and third respectivelyDevaang one of Indias brightest young prospects who recently won gold at the Khelo India University Games and a silver at the 2024 Pan American Championships was the bestplaced Indian in the individual rankings at third with 663 points just four behind topranked neutral archer Kirill Batuev Chinas Jiabing Yang 664 took the second spotSukhchain Singh making a comeback after five years was placed eighth with 657 while the 20yearold Juyel Sarkar a consistent performer in Asia Cup team events finished 11th with 654In womens recurve Ruma Biswas produced an impressive show to finish second with 650 points just three behind Singapores Tabitha Ern Lin Yeo Kirti 638 10th and Ridhi Phor 627 17th who is returning after a threeyear gap were the other notable Indian performers as the team secured third place behind Malaysia and VietnamCompound quartet shinesThe experienced compound men completely dominated proceedings occupying the top four spots in the individual qualification Veteran Rajat Chauhan led the field with a stellar 712 out of a possible 720 followed by world No 4 Rishabh Yadav 708 Asian Games gold medallist Prathamesh Jawkar 706 and Uday Kamboj 703The trio which is among the strongest in the field and will be aiming to defend their title also ensured India a direct quarterfinal berth in the team event where they will take on the winners of Chinese Taipei No 8 and Singapore No 9India had entered the tournament as firm favourites in the compound section even in the absence of some big names with the core group boasting significant international success including a World Championships team gold last yearIn the womens compound section 20yearold Chikitha Taniparthi led the Indian challenge with a fourthplace finish 697 continuing her steady rise after a team bronze at this venue last yearShe was followed by experienced archer Raj Kaur 5th while Tejal Salve a gold medallist from last years Asia Cup leg in Singapore finished 13th with 658 The trio combined to give India the top seeding in the team eventIndia also topped the standings in both recurve and compound mixed team events underlining their allround depth despite fielding a relatively inexperienced squadThe tournament marks the start of a long international season with the Indian thinktank opting to rest established names such as Deepika Kumari Ankita Bhakat Dhiraj Bommadevara Tarundeep Rai Jyothi Surekha Vennam and Abhishek Verma to test bench strength ahead of the Asian Games later this yearDespite the absence of these marquee archers India the defending overall champions will be aiming to continue their dominance on the Asia Cup circuit having topped the medal tally with eight medals including five gold in last years opening legWith 194 archers from 19 countries competing the event offers crucial world ranking points and serves as an earlyseason testing groundThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever