The Indian men’s archery team, comprising Atanu Das, Pravin Jadhav and Tarundeep Rai, lost to top-ranked South Korea in the quarterfinal at the Tokyo Olympics on Monday.
The ninth-ranked Indian side, which qualified for the Olympics by securing a silver medal in the 2019 World championships in Den Bosch, lost 6-0 to Korea, which got a first-round bye.
The Koreans, including Je Deok Kim, Woojin Kim and Jinhyek Oh, relied on their high accuracy to win the first set 59-54. They maintained the tempo to claim the next set 59-57 even as the Indians gave improved performance.
Pushed into a do-or-die situation, India lost the third set, with a 56-54 margin, as well as the contest.
The difference between the two sides could be gauged from the fact that the Koreans scored a 10 on 13 occasions, while the Indians managed just seven 10s — Jadhav hit four of those.
The Koreans had only one 8, scored in the last round by Woojin, in their 18 shots. Indians shot four 8s, including three by Das.
India wins
Earlier, India beat eighth-placed Kazakhstan 6-2 in the pre-quarterfinals.
India won the first, second and fourth sets, with margins of 55-54, 52-51 and 55-54 respectively.
The experienced Kazakh side, consisting of Ilfat Abdullin, Denis Gankin and Sanzhar Mussayev, took the third set 57-56.
Jadhav and Das’ closing shots, worth 10 apiece, brought the first set to India. The Kazakhs could not score a 10 in the next as India tightened its grip.
The Kazakh archers lifted their game in the third set before India, thanks to 10s from Jadhav and Das in a crunch situation, pocketed the fourth.
India’s three male archers and lone female archer Deepika Kumari will now compete in individual events.
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