Paris Olympics 2024: Indian Archer Dhiraj Confident After Qualifying For Quarters In Recurve Mixed Team Event

After qualifying for the quarter-finals in the archery recurve mixed team event at the ongoing Paris Olympics, Indian archer Dhiraj Bommadevara said that he and Ankita Bhakat are feeling ‘confident.’

Speaking after the qualification round, Bommadevara mentioned that they have set their mindset for the quarterfinal round.

“We are feeling pretty confident. We have one mindset today: that we won’t regret our own shooting. On the first day when I played team matches, I assumed the pressure would be about 10 percent more than World Cup stages. But when I came here, it’s like 90 percent up,” Bommadevara was quoted by Olympics.com as saying.

“I realized that in the Olympics, there are no limits to pressure. So I started accepting it. I started facing pressure. I focused on myself. I prepared for that,” he added.

Indian archers Ankita Bhakat and Dhiraj Bommadevara advanced to the quarterfinals in the archery recurve mixed team event after beating Indonesia’s Diananda Choirunisa and Arif Pangestu at the ongoing Paris Olympics on Friday.

Ankita and Dhiraj defeated the Indonesians 5-1 in the Round of 16 match at Les Invalides. The Indian archers took the first and third sets with scores of 37-36 and 38-37, respectively, while the second set was tied at 38-38. They hit five 10s during their pre-quarterfinal victory.

Ankita and Dhiraj will face either Spain or the People’s Republic of China in the quarter-finals of the archery recurve mixed team event on Friday.

Earlier in the archery men’s individual 1/16 event, India’s series of upsets continued at the Paris Olympics after young archer Dhiraj Bommadevara suffered a heartbreaking defeat.

Canada’s Eric Peters and Dhiraj played a thrilling draw that kept fans on the edge of their seats. Both archers frequently scored 10s, leading to a highly captivating contest. Dhiraj came close but ultimately fell short, sealing his exit from the event.

The first set began with a 10 from Dhiraj, giving him the lead. However, Peters, relying on his accuracy, fought back to level the match. In the third set, Peters hit three 9s while Dhiraj struck two 10s to take the set. The fourth set saw both archers hitting 10s on each shot, sharing the points.

Dhiraj was one step away from advancing to the next round, but a nine in his final shot allowed Peters to force the game into a shoot-off. Both archers struck 10s, but Peters’ arrow was closer to the center, enabling him to move into the next round and end Dhiraj’s run in the singles event.

(With ANI Inputs)

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