India’s shooting juggernaut continues, as men’s 10m air pistol team lands another gold at Asian Games

India landed their seventh gold medal at the Asian Games, with the shooting contingent leading the way once again on Day 5. The men’s air pistol team of Arjun Singh, Sarabjot Singh, and Shiva Narwal triumphed with an overall score of 1733, overcoming a lacklustre beginning to finish strong on Thursday. Sarabjot and Arjun entered the individual final too after ending in the top eight, and although neither could land a medal there, finishing 4th (199 points) and 8th (113.3) respectively, they were responsible in India staging one of the greatest comebacks in team shooting event at the Games. China took the second position, finishing just a point below while Vietnam were third at 1730.

The competition began with Uzbekistan’s Mukhammad Kamalov taking an early lead, hitting a perfect 60 out of 60 shots. In contrast, India’s Arjun started in 16th place with a score of 68/70, Sarabjot was 29th with 38/40, and Shiva held the 45th position with 45/50. The qualification consisted of six series of ten shots each, with a maximum possible score of ten for each shot. As the competition progressed, Arjun improved steadily, climbing to 10th place with an average score of 9.667 after 15 shots, while Sarabjot maintained a score of 9.500 after 8 shots, securing the 30th position. Shiva though faced some difficulties, holding 46th place with an average of 9.200 after 10 shots.

This placed India in the 8th position in the team event standings. Arjun continued to improve, reaching 14th place at 9.650 after 20 shots. Sarabjot remained in 30th place at 9.500 after 16 shots, and Shiva held 37th place with an average of 9.400 after 20 shots. The overall leader, Vladimir Svechnikov, was performing exceptionally well with a score of 9.870.

Arjun’s incredible rally saw him rise to sixth at 9.690. Sarabjot held 25th place with a score of 9.500, and Shiva remained 35th at 9.200. Arjun’s remarkable performance then propelled India to the sixth position in the team event and as the final rounds of the pistol qualification neared, he maintained his 7th place position with an average of 9.696. Sarabjot held 18th place with a score of 9.595, and Shiva climbed to 21st at 9.556.

India were thus, on the verge of a bronze medal, this comeback being nothing short of spectacular but there was room to better it. Arjun moved to 8th at 9.647, Sarabjot was in 11th place at 9.628 and Shiva secured 14th with an average of 9.600. The last two series witnessed an astonishing turn of events as India climbed to the silver medal position.

However, Arjun experienced a slight setback in the final round, dropping from 8th to 11th place after shooting 27/30, with 7 shots remaining. Shiva, who initially struggled at 45th place with a score of 9.200, had risen to 12th with an average score of 9.619, and Sarabjot was 15th place With Arjun in 10th place, Sarabjot 11th, and Shiva 14th, the team was on their last round of shots, after which India were on top.