At the Asian Games 2026 in Aichi-Nagoya, two-time Olympic medallist shooter Manu Bhaker faced a difficult outing in the 10m air pistol competitions, failing to secure a medal in both the individual and team contests. The 24-year-old shooter raised podium hopes after advancing to the eight-woman individual final, but her campaign ended with a fifth-place finish on a score of 181.1 points. Earlier in the day, the Indian women's contingent had also suffered a heartbreak in the team standings, missing out on third place by the narrowest of tie-breaker margins.
How the Individual 10m Air Pistol Final Unfolded
During the opening stages of the individual medal round, Manu Bhaker stayed in contention with solid shooting, logging a score of 100.3 points across the first two series. However, as the elimination stage progressed and pressure mounted, she was unable to keep pace with the leaders. When the field narrowed down to five shooters, Bhaker exited the competition with 181.1 points. South Korea's Chu Gaeun produced a commanding display to clinch the gold medal with an Asian Games record score of 246.3. China claimed the remaining podium spots, with Shen Yiyao securing silver on 241.3 points and Jiang Ranxin capturing bronze with 221.6 points.
Qualification Round and Team Event Heartbreak
Earlier in the qualification phase, Bhaker had placed third with a total of 579 points to comfortably seal her berth in the individual final. Her teammates could not join her in the top eight; Esha Singh finished 15th with 572 points, while Suruchi Singh recorded 568 points to finish in 26th position. In the team classification, where individual qualification scores are combined, India suffered a bitter blow against Vietnam. Both nations ended tied on a total score of 1719 points, but Vietnam was awarded the bronze medal because India registered fewer inner-10 shots, pushing the Indian squad down to fourth place.
Women's Skeet Trio Claims Shooting Medal Number Six
India found joy on the shotgun range on Wednesday courtesy of the women's skeet team comprising Raiza Dhillon, Maheshwari Chauhan, and Parinaaz Dhaliwal. The trio registered a combined total of 331 points to secure the bronze medal, marking India's sixth medal in shooting at these Asian Games. In skeet shooting, each competitor aims for a maximum possible score of 125 targets. Both Parinaaz Dhaliwal and Raiza Dhillon shot identical scores of 111 out of 125, while Maheshwari Chauhan contributed 109 points to seal the podium place. With this result, India's overall shooting tally at the Games reached four silver and two bronze medals.
Another Podium Opportunity in the 25m Sport Pistol
Bhaker's campaign in Japan is not over yet. The Paris Olympics double bronze medallist will have another chance to claim silverware when she takes to the range for the women's 25m sport pistol event on September 27 and September 28, where she will aim to bounce back and deliver an improved performance for the Indian contingent.
