Shanghai, May 10 (IANS) India’s women’s recurve team produced a stunning comeback performance to defeat hosts China in a dramatic shoot-off and clinch the gold medal at the Archery World Cup Stage 2 in Shanghai on Sunday.
Deepika Kumari, Ankita Bhakat and Kumkum Mohod from India kept their cool in a tense final to edge past China 5-4 (28-26) in the shoot-off and claim India's first Archery World Cup gold medal since 2021.
The match was a see-saw affair with India winning the first set before the Chinese team came back strongly to level the scores and push the match into a shoot-off after the four-set regulation ended level.
With the pressure mounting in the decider, the Indian archers came through when it mattered the most. Veteran star Deepika Kumari then stepped up to seal the memorable victory in front of the home crowd, scoring a crucial nine on the final arrow of the shoot-off.
The Indian team had earlier pulled off another major upset in the competition by defeating record 10-time Olympic champions South Korea in the semifinals to book their spot in the gold medal match.
The win also gave India their second medal of the tournament after Pravin Jadhav opened the country’s account with a bronze in the compound individual event on Saturday.
Later in the day, India’s medal hopes remained alive in Shanghai as Simranjeet Kaur advanced to the semifinals of the recurve individual event, staying one win away from claiming her first individual World Cup medal.
Sahil Jadhav earned a bronze medal in the men’s individual compound competition at the Archery World Cup 2026 Stage 2 on Saturday, securing his first career World Cup medal. The 25-year-old Indian athlete defeated Denmark’s Martin Damsbo 147-144 in the bronze medal match. After losing the first set 30-29, Sahil rallied by winning the next four sets to ensure a spot on the podium.
Earlier, the eighth-seeded Indian narrowly defeated Austria’s Nico Wiener, the 2021 world champion, in a shoot-off after both finished with a score of 147 in the quarter-finals. His journey concluded in the semi-finals, where reigning world champion Nicolas Girard of France beat him 147-145, leading Sahil to compete in the bronze medal match.
Sahil’s campaign featured victories against Indian veteran Abhishek Verma in the third round and Germany’s Ruven Fluss with a score of 149-146 in the round of 16.
His bronze was India’s only medal in the compound events at this year’s Shanghai World Cup, a stark difference from the five compound medals India won at the same venue last year.
