India's dream run in the men's compound events of the World Archery Championships ended on a disappointing note on Monday as the gold-winning team of Rishabh Yadav, Aman Saini and Prathamesh Fuge crashed out of the individual quarterfinals here.
The trio, who won a path-breaking gold in the team competition, was placed in different quarters of the draw and India had a realistic shot at a clean sweep, but it ended in heartbreak. As a result, India failed to defend the individual gold medal in men’s compound section at the World Championships.
Ojas Deotale had become world champion in the last edition at Berlin in 2023, but this time the archer could not make it to the Indian team due to stiff competition in the trials. The women’s individual events are yet to be completed in the compound competitions. Fuge's fairytale debut run came to an end against world number two Mathias Fullerton of Denmark, who prevailed 148-148 (10-9) in the shoot-off in a thrilling quarterfinal.
In a battle of two 22-year-olds, Fuge, fresh from his sensational demolition of World Number 1 Mike Schloesser in the pre-quarters with a perfect 150 out of 150, had the early advantage and led 119-118 till the fourth end. But a dropped point at the start of the final end proved costly as Fullerton drew level 148-148 before clinching the shoot-off with a perfect 10 against Fuge's 9.
Returning after the mid-day break, Fuge picked up from where he left off in the morning, reeling off seven 10s on the trot before dropping his first point in the third end. His seven 10s meant Fuge shot 23 perfect scores. But that was not enough to stop Fullerton, who responded with a flawless series of 10s to set up a nail-biting finish.
Fuge reclaimed the lead in the fourth end as the Dane faltered, but a 9 in the deciding end dashed the Indian's hopes as Fullerton stayed perfect. India's Number 1 Rishabh Yadav also went down fighting, losing 145-146 to eventual world champion Nicolas Girard of France. Yadav, who had won team gold and mixed team silver with Jyothi Surekha Vennam on Sunday, squandered a one-point lead in the penultimate round, dropping two points in the final end to bow out of medal contention.
Saini, meanwhile, lost 144-147 to American Curtis Broadnax, ensuring that none of the three Indians could carry forward the momentum from Sunday's historic run.
Earlier in the morning session, Fuge, the lowest-ranked Indian qualifier in the men's compound section with a seeding of 19th, produced the biggest upset of his career by knocking out world Number 1 and 2013 world champion Schloesser of the Netherlands. Fuge, who was making his world championship debut, was flawless, shooting a perfect 150 out of 150, hitting 10s with all 15 arrows.
Both archers began in extraordinary fashion, shooting 10s across the first three ends. But Schloesser finally cracked under pressure, dropping a point in the fourth end. Fuge, showing remarkable composure, continued his run of 10s to clinch the tie.
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