Highly-rated Rudrankksh Patil keen to add Asian Games medal to his tally

At 19, Patil has been spoken of as a possible successor to Abhinav Bindra. And the youngster seems to have a clear idea of the work that needs to be done to reach that level.

Rudrankksh Patil during the ISSF World Cup Rifle/Pistol at the Madhya Pradesh State Shooting Academy in Bhopal. | Photo Credit: AM FARUQUI/The Hindu

He won gold and an Olympic quota in his maiden international senior-level outing, and now Rudrankksh Balasaheb Patil is keen to do it again at the upcoming Asian Games.

At 19, Patil has been spoken of as a possible successor to Abhinav Bindra. And the youngster seems to have a clear idea of the work that needs to be done to reach that level.

“As teenagers, we have a lot of thoughts on how things are going to be, but because of the competition in India, we are trained to handle those pressures. But it’s all about the kind of perspective we go in with on that particular day—sometimes it’s positive, sometimes negative, so we are not quite sure what might come into our mind on that day, to be very honest. What we definitely try is to be in the present and grow from all the experience during matches,” he told Sportstar on the sidelines of an NRAI interaction on Sunday.

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Ranked fifth in the world, Patil in 2002 became only the second Indian to win a World Championship gold in the 10m air rifle after Bindra in 2006 and has been in constant touch with the latter. “We have had calls, and I have also gone to his office in Chandigarh. He’s a great mentor and guides you on a lot of things, but as sportspersons, we know we have to stay in the present. We don’t discuss the past or future; we only talk about the current problems and how to solve them,” he revealed.

While he is keen to meet Neeraj Chopra at Hangzhou, another senior he has learned a lot from is Divyansh Singh Panwar, teammate and competitor at the Asiad, but insists there is no rivalry. “I’ve known him since 2019, he’s a really good shooter, mentor, and friend, and he’s been to the Olympics also. I have seen him shoot in competitions a lot, and he’s my senior. It’s always good to learn from each other and push each other to do well.”

Senior vice-president of NRAI Kalikesh Singh Deo, who is holding charge as acting president at the moment, admitted that the Indian squad was quite young but was confident of an overall good showing in Hangzhou. “We have an excellent team and really bright prospects. We have focused not just on technical and physical fitness but also on mental training and match preparedness. 

“At the recent World Championships, we got four quotas and medals too, and from a shooting perspective, it was a much tougher tournament. So, if we can win there, we can win anywhere. One of the areas we have identified over the years is to focus on younger athletes, strength training, mind training, and competition pressure. I believe results are now coming in,” he added.