Bhaker returns empty-handed as India’s shooting campaign falls short of Hangzhou

Manu Bhaker (PTI Photo)

NEW DELHI: Double Olympic medallist Manu Bhaker will return from the Asian Games 2026 without a medal after competing in four events in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan — an unexpected outcome for one of India’s biggest medal hopes and another indication of the shooting contingent’s struggles to match its record haul from the previous edition.India had won 22 shooting medals, including seven gold, at the Hangzhou Asian Games in 2023. In Aichi-Nagoya, the Indian shooters have so far managed 12 medals, with only one gold, with just five trap medal events remaining in the competition. Esha Singh’s silver in the women’s 25m pistol on Monday added to the tally, but the overall campaign has lacked the gold-medal returns India had hoped for.

Manu’s four-event campaign ends without a podium

Manu entered the Games as one of India’s biggest medal contenders after her historic double bronze at the Paris Olympics and strong recent international form. But the 24-year-old could not convert her four medal opportunities into a podium finish.Her campaign began with the women’s 10m air pistol events. Manu qualified third for the individual final with 579 points but finished fifth after scoring 181.1 in the medal round. India also narrowly missed a medal in the corresponding team event, finishing fourth.Asian Games Full Coverage | Medal Tally | ScheduleThe 25m pistol events offered another opportunity, but Manu missed the individual final after scoring 579-18x in qualification to finish 11th. She then ended her campaign on Monday as India finished fifth in the 25m pistol team event.The Indian trio of Esha Singh, Manu and Rahi Sarnobat scored 1727-56x. China won gold with 1743-68x, South Korea took silver with 1735-65x and Chinese Taipei claimed bronze with 1734-48x.Esha provided a bright spot by winning silver in the individual 25m pistol final after an exhausting series of shoot-offs, giving India another shooting medal.ALSO READ:0 points! How a rare, inexplicable miss cost India a 25m pistol team medal

Shooting still one of India’s biggest medal contributor, but gold returns lag

Despite Manu’s disappointment, shooting remains one of India’s most productive disciplines at Aichi-Nagoya. The contingent has delivered 12 medals so far, but the haul includes only one gold, a sharp contrast to the seven gold medals and 22 total shooting medals India collected at Hangzhou.Manu had arrived in Japan in good form. She won bronze at the 2026 ISSF World Cup in Hangzhou, while Esha claimed gold in the women’s 25m pistol at the same event. At the ISSF World Cup in Munich, Manu also won silver in the 10m air pistol mixed team event with Samrat Rana. She subsequently won individual silver in the women’s 25m pistol at the Asian Shooting Championships.Her father, Ram Kishan Bhaker, acknowledged that her performance had fallen below the standards she had established.“Manu’s performance was not as per her standard because she set a very high standard and expectation for the Indian fans. As per my expectations, her score must be more than 585; it should be more than 585 to 595. Today’s score was not enough…” he told IANS.He also questioned the circumstances surrounding Rahi Sarnobat’s crucial miss in the 25m pistol qualification.

“Rahi was shooting very well, but suddenly one shot was not showing, which I believe may be the technical glitch or something else.”“But, later on the jury said that the shot went out of target, which certainly I don’t believe, because Rahi is a very experienced shooter, and it could be something else. Let the jury test what it is or otherwise everything was going well,” he added.With five trap medal events still to come, India can add to its shooting tally. But with the likes of Manu unable to convert multiple medal opportunities, the discipline’s overall performance in Aichi-Nagoya has so far fallen well short of the extraordinary returns from Hangzhou.