a day ago
Suruchi completes golden hat-trick in World Cups
New Delhi: 'I just pick up the pistol and shoot. I don't think too much at the firing station or even in a final. I have no pre-game rituals like most shooters nor do I visualise.' That's how Suruchi Phogat had described her approach before leaving for the ongoing rifle/pistol World Cup in Munich. A week on, she proved that while her methods may sound a little too simplistic for an elite shooter, it really doesn't matter as long as she can, well, pick up the pistol and shoot.
On Friday, India's latest shooting sensation rose above the elite field to nail her third straight World Cup gold, repeating her success from Buenos Aires and Lima in April. Unlike the twin finals in the South American leg where Suruchi had aggregated 244.6 and 243.6 respectively, Munich, with its assembly of shooting stars, offered a much tougher examination of skills and temperament.
'Munich is bound to be much tougher because all big shooters turn up. In South America, to be honest, the competition was not that challenging,' she had said. Sure enough, the 19-year-old was up to the task in Germany, her 241.9 edging her past Frenchwoman Camille Jederzejewski (241.7) and China's Yao Qianxun who shot 221.7.
The level of competition can be gauged from the fact that four of her seven challengers in the medal round competed at last year's Paris Olympics while reigning Olympic champion Oh Yejin and Paris bronze medallist Manu Bhaker couldn't even make the cut.
Suruchi's feat extended a brilliant run that began last December when she swept all three individual titles (senior, junior, and youth) at the National Championships. She then topped the National Games before doing a golden double in South America on her senior World Cup debut.
She showed ample signs of her form in the qualification itself when she shot a brilliant 588 to equal the national record held by Manu. Yao topped the 110-strong field with a score of 589. Compatriot Sainyam, shooting for RPO, ended the qualification in fifth place (580). Asian Games gold medallist Palak Gulia was 36th with a tally of 570 while Lima World Cup silver medallist in 25m event, Simranpreet Kaur Brar, finished 51st (568).
Suruchi unlocked her best in the final, racing to an early lead with a 52.1 in the first series of five shots. A couple of 9s pushed her to the second spot after the next series but a solid 10.8 on the 12th shot handed her the lead again.
A 9.7 on her 16th shot meant she conceded the advantage to Yao before Jederzejewski, a 25m silver medallist in Paris, capitalised with a 10.7 and 10.5 to go on top.
Suruchi held on to the second place for the next two series and just when it felt that Jederzejewski had done enough with a 0.5-point gap, the Indian nailed a critical 10.5 on her penultimate shot to turn the tables on Jederzejewski who could shoot only a 9.5.
Having turned a 0.5-point deficit into a 0.5-point advantage in one shot, Suruchi shot a 9.5 on her final try. Needing to hit at least a 10 to force a shoot-off, Jederzejewski could only respond with a 9.8 as Suruchi completed her hat-trick.
The youngster was visibly disappointed with her final shot and she would look at the generous smattering of 9s on her scoresheet a lot closely.
In all, she hit a 9 nine times in the final and let go of the lead twice, areas that she and her coach Suresh Singh would most certainly address when she hits the domestic ranges.
'She is clearly not happy with her last shot. A lot of times that feeling of a last shot stays with us for much longer, and so all of us want to fiinish well. It looks the case with her,' Manu, who shared the podium with Suruchi in Lima, noted in the commentary.
For someone who has made her senior debut only three months back, Suruchi's ability to stay calm under pressure and mount a comeback stood out. With Manu yet to hit her straps and the likes of Brar, Gulia, and Sainyam all having tasted varying degrees of international success, the competition among the Indian pistol shooters is only set to get more exciting.
Manu and Suruchi will line up again on Saturday, the last day of the competition, in the mixed team event. The Paris double medallist with team up with Aditya Malra while Suruchi will join forces with Varun Tomar. In the men's 25m pistol discipline, no Indian could make the final with Anish Bhanwala's 18th-place finish being the best.
