Surekha: Winning for country more important than individual goals

After sealing her berth in the Archery World Cup Finals, Vennam Jyothi Surekha is now eyeing a strong performance at the upcoming Asian Games.

Jyothi Surekha Vennam won a silver in the team event (compound) with Trisha Deb and Muskan Kirar and then a bronze in mixed event with Abhishek Verma in the recently concluded Archery World Cup. (File Image)

For someone who has six World Cup medals to her name, 22-year-old archer Vennam Jyothi Surekha is modesty personified despite making history of sorts by qualifying in Berlin last week-end for the World Cup Finals this September in the Compound mixed event.

“I think I still have to be much better in shooting in windy conditions,” starts off the soft-spoken champion archer from Vijayawada.

Reflecting back on making it to the World Cup finals, Surekha confesses that she was not expecting it to happen. “We (she and Abhishek Verma) just wanted to be consistent and are glad we pulled it off,” says Surekha in an exclusive chat with Sportstar on her return from Berlin on Tuesday.

READ: India takes women’s compound team silver at Archery World Cup

For the record, this ace archer won a silver in team event (compound) with Trisha Deb and Muskan Kirar and then a bronze in mixed event with Abhishek Verma.

“The fact that I made it to the Finals for the first time is really special and I deem it a great honour to compete with the top eight teams in the Worlds,” she says, pointing out that the conditions and the standard of competition were quite demanding in Berlin.

“Making it to the Finals before next month’s Asian Games is a huge morale-booster. The mixed team is being introduced in the Asiad for the first time and I am really glad that I could make it.

“It will be a great experience to compete in Asiad, which will be my second appearance having won a bronze in the team event last time,” she adds.

“I don’t think there will be pressure on me because of the kind of expectations. This is one factor which affects any athlete if he or she thinks too much about it. I just want to focus on how to keep improving in different conditions,” she notes.

“Naturally, every effort will be made during the Asiad preparatory camp in Sonepat to fine-tune whatever rough edges you feel you have. The biggest and immediate goal for me is to win an Asiad medal,” she continues.

Typical of her character, Surekha says she puts winning medals for the country ahead of individual goals. “I never think of how many medals I have won in a World Cup. My first target is to bring laurels to the country for individuals come next in my perspective,” she says when reminded that after Deepika Kumari (eight medals in 2011) she has the best haul for an Indian woman archer in a World Cup.