Share this story
The future looks incredibly promising for Manu Bhaker and Saurabh Chaudhary. The dynamic duo recently secured their second World Cup gold, dominating the 10m Air Pistol Mixed Team event in Beijing this April. They left little room for doubt in the final, comfortably beating China's Jiang Ranxin and Pang Wei with a decisive 16-6 scoreline.
This victory follows an equally impressive win at the February World Cup in New Delhi. What is truly striking is that these two teenagers are likely just beginning to unlock their full potential. Having already disrupted the status quo in Indian shooting, they are expected to remain top contenders for the rest of the season.
Their individual performances, however, have told different stories. Beijing was a tough outing for Manu, who struggled in the women's 10m Air Pistol and finished 17th in the qualifiers, missing the final. This followed a similar disappointment in Delhi, where a 14th-place finish in the qualifying rounds kept her out of the finals.th place. Similarly, at the World Cup in Delhi, she failed to qualify for the final after finishing 14th during the qualifying stages.
Saurabh's trajectory has been different, reaching new peaks in Beijing by capturing gold in his debut senior World Cup. He didn't just win; he set a world record score of 245.0 in the 10m Air Pistol and earned an Olympic quota. Even with such a massive achievement, he stayed grounded, admitting after the match that he ignored the lead and the quota, focusing simply on his performance rather than the record.
While they have already qualified for the November World Cup finals, the pair will look for more success at the upcoming event in Germany. Manu is determined to rediscover her form in the individual events and secure her own Olympic spot, while Chaudhary aims to build his reputation as one of the elite shooters in the world. Indian fans will undoubtedly be following their progress with great anticipation throughout the year.
Written by: Nithin John