Paris Olympics 2024 Shooting: Maheshwari Chauhan and Anantjeet Singh Naruka miss out on bronze by just 1 point in the Mixed Skeet Team event
Indian shooters Maheshwari Chauhan and Anantjeet Singh Naruka faced a heartbreaking defeat in the bronze-medal match of the mixed skeet team event at the Paris Olympics. The pair lost 44-43 to China's Lyu Jianlin and Jiang Yiting in a tense and closely contested contest on Monday, August 5.
In the qualification round, Maheshwari Chauhan and Anantjeet Singh Naruka finished fourth with a total score of 146, which secured them a spot in the bronze-medal match.
The bronze-medal match began with the Chinese team delivering a flawless performance, scoring a perfect eight points as both Lyu and Jiang hit all their targets. Chauhan matched their accuracy with a perfect score, but Naruka missed one target, giving India a total of seven points in the first series.
In the second series, the Indian pair mounted a strong comeback. They capitalized on Jiang's three missed shots, scoring six points to China's five. This effort brought the total score to a tie at 13 points each after two series.
Both teams continued to be at their best in the third series, each scoring seven points, keeping the scores level and the tension high. In the fourth series, the Chinese pair edged ahead slightly, scoring eight points to India's seven, gaining a crucial one-point lead.
A perfect finish but not a perfect result for Maheshwari Chauhan and Anantjeet Singh Naruka
The fifth series saw both teams at their best again, with each scoring a perfect eight points. This left the Indian team of Maheshwari Chauhan and Anantjeet Singh Naruka needing the Chinese to miss at least one shot in the final series to level the scores and force a tiebreaker. However, both teams delivered flawless performances yet again in the final series, with each scoring another perfect eight, resulting in a final score of 44-43 in favor of the Chinese team.
Despite their best efforts and shooting perfect scores in the last two series, Maheshwari Chauhan and Anantjeet Singh Naruka fell just short and had to settle for a fourth-place finish by a narrow margin of just one point.