NEW DELHI: Kumkum Mohod and Dhiraj Bommadevara signed off with a silver medal in the mixed team recurve event after China’s Jingyi Zhu and Mengqi Li prevailed 5-3 in a closely fought gold-medal match at the Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya on Friday.The Indian pair had to settle for silver after fighting back from a 0-4 deficit and briefly threatening to take the contest into a deciding shoot-off. Their medal was India’s sixth in archery at the Games, taking the discipline’s tally to four gold, one silver and one bronze.China made the stronger start, with Dhiraj opening with an 8 before Kumkum followed with a 7. India managed 34 points in the opening set, while Zhu and Li combined for 38 to take the first two match points.India then found itself in a deeper hole in the second set. Kumkum and Dhiraj could manage only 35, while China posted 37 to win the set and move 4-0 ahead.Asian Games Full Coverage | Medal Tally | Schedule
India fight back from 0-4 down
With China needing just one more set to claim gold, India produced a determined response.Kumkum opened the third set with an 8 but responded with a crucial 10 on her second attempt. Dhiraj helped India post 37, while China finished on 36. Li’s final arrow was a 7, leaving the door open for India.The result gave India the set, crucially, they remained alive in the match at 2-4.Kumkum and Dhiraj then produced one of their best shots of the final in the fourth set. Kumkum began with a 9 and Dhiraj followed with another 9 to give India 18 points from the opening two arrows.Kumkum then delivered a 10 before Dhiraj added a 9, taking India to 37. China, however, held its nerve and Zhu and Li matched India’s score, with a 10 on their final arrow levelling the set at 37-37.That was enough for China to secure the one point required for gold, leaving India with the silver.
Dramatic semifinal comeback against Japan
Kumkum and Dhiraj had earlier produced a superb comeback to defeat Japan’s Nanami Asakuno and Junya Nakanishi 5-3 in the semifinal.India trailed 0-2 after losing the opening set 37-38. The second set ended 36-36, leaving Japan 3-1 ahead, but the Indian pair responded strongly under pressure.They shot 39 in the third set to Japan’s 35 and levelled the contest at 3-3. The fourth set then went down to the final arrow, with Nakanishi shooting a 7 to finish on 35. India posted 37 to take the set and complete a 5-3 victory.The silver added to what has been a highly productive archery campaign for India in Aichi-Nagoya.Earlier on Friday, India’s women’s recurve team scripted a landmark triumph by defeating 10-time Olympic champions South Korea 5-3 to win the country’s maiden Asian Games gold in the event.Ankita Bhakat, Kirti Sharma and 17-year-old Kumkum held their nerve in difficult windy conditions to overcome the defending champions. India had also defeated China 5-1 in the semifinal.The women’s recurve gold was India’s fourth archery gold of the Games, following victories in the men’s compound, women’s compound and mixed compound team events.