Granada’s Las Gabias Shooting Range witnessed a heartbreak for Indian men’s 10m air pistol shooters on Wednesday as they missed the ISSF World Cup finals by a whisker. Mukesh Nelavelli, fresh off a mixed team gold on Tuesday, topped Indians at 14th with 579-21x, agonizingly two points off the qualifying mark in a 86-shooter field.
The scores tell the tale: Mukesh’s series read 94, 98, 98, 97, 95. Anton Aristarkhov of Russia edged into finals with 581-20x, behind leader Ji Yu of China (588-18x). Akash Bhardwaj’s 580-26x earned 10th for ranking points, Ujjwal Malik hit 577-17x (22nd), Pramod Kumar 574-16x (39th), and Varun Tomar 569-13x (63rd).
Bright sparks emerged in women’s 25m pistol precision: Rhythm Sangwan’s 292-9x (99,96,97) and Divya TS’s 291-8x (96,98,97) landed them in top 8 contention. Simranpreet Kaur Brar managed 282-5x amid a tough day. For rankings, Abhigna Ashok Patel scored 286-8x, Chinki Yadav 277-7x.
Thursday promises drama with women’s 25m rapid and finals, men’s 10m air rifle full rounds, and women’s 50m rifle 3P elimination. As Paris Olympics quotas hang in balance, India’s depth in pistol events signals potential for redemption and glory ahead.
