Paris Olympics 2024 Archery: India's Deepika Kumari goes down in thrilling quarterfinal clash against South Korea's Suhyeon Nam
India's only remaining archer, Deepika Kumari, faced an extremely tough challenge in the quarterfinals of the Paris 2024 Olympics on Saturday, August 3, as she went head-to-head with South Korea’s second seed, Suhyeon Nam. Despite an incredible effort, Kumari narrowly missed advancing to the semifinals, losing 4-6 in the thrilling encounter.
The match began with Nam starting off strong by hitting the center. Deepika narrowly missed the bullseye by hitting a 9, but followed up with a perfect 10 after Nam's 8. This leveled the score, and another 8 from Nam followed by a 9 from Deepika allowed the Indian to take the first set 28-26.
In the second set, Nam found her rhythm, firing shots of 9, 10, and 9. Deepika responded with a 10 but misfired with a 6 in the next shot. Finishing with a 9, she conceded the set to Nam 28-25.
The third set saw both archers hit the bullseye with their opening shots. They both scored nines on their second shots, keeping the scores level. Nam’s 9 on the final shot was outdone by Deepika's perfect 10, allowing the Indian to take the set and a 4-2 lead.
The fourth set mirrored the intensity of the third. Nam opened with another solid 10, matched by Deepika. However, Nam's subsequent shots of 9 and 10 were enough to overcome Deepika's misfire of 7 from her second shot. Despite her final shot being a 10, it was not enough to match Nam’s total of 29, and the Korean claimed the set 29-27 to level terms and take things to the final set.
In the fifth and final set, Nam maintained her remarkable accuracy with her third consecutive opening shot of 10. Deepika responded with a nine, which Nam matched with her second shot. As Deepika fired another nine, Nam sealed her victory with another 10. Deepika’s third 9 of the set concluded her campaign, as she lost the set 29-27, and with it, the match.
Despite the loss, Deepika Kumari’s performance at the Paris 2024 Olympics in the individual event was nothing short of commendable. She matched her and India’s best performance in the individual events with her quarterfinal appearance.
India’s mixed team in archery narrowly missed out on a medal at the Paris Olympics 2024
Earlier at the Paris 2024 Olympics, India's Dhiraj Bommadevara and Ankita Bhakat fell to the USA's Casey Kaufhold and Brady Ellison 2-6 in the bronze medal match. Before their third-place match, the Indian duo secured a comfortable 5-1 victory over Indonesia's Choirunisa Diananda and Pangestu Arif in the Round of 16.
They then triumphed over the Spanish duo of Gonzalez Acha and Elia Canales in a thrilling four-set battle, winning 5-3. However, in the semifinals, they were defeated 2-6 by the eventual gold medalists from South Korea.