Glasgow: India enjoyed another golden day in the shooting competitions at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow on Saturday, with both Rahi Sarnobat and Apurvi Chandela taking titles at the Barry Buddon Shooting Range.
Sarnobat beat compatriot Anisa Sayyed to gold in the women’s 25-metre pistol event, outscoring her by eight points to two in the deciding match. Australia’s Lalita Yauhleuskaya took the bronze.
There was another Indian one-two in the women’s 10-metre air rifle as Chandela beat world number eight Ayonika Paul in an exciting battle to clinch gold.
For Chandela, the gold was her maiden international medal, while Paul clinched her second, having won World Cup bronze in Slovenia last month.
Earlier, Prakash Nanjappa won silver in the men’s 10-metre air pistol to continue India’s good form after Abhinav Bindra (men’s 10-metre air rifle gold) and Malaika Goel (women’s 10-metre air pistol silver) won medals on Friday.
World number 17 Chandela, who topped qualification with 415.6 points, led in the finals right from the start and shot 206.7 points.
The 21-year-old Paul was fourth in the qualification round with a score of 413.2 points and clinched the silver with a score of 204.9 in the final round.
Both Chandela, 21, and Paul were engaged in an interesting duel for the gold medal after Malaysia’s Nur Sayani Mohammad Tayabi settled for the bronze medal with a final score of 184.4.
Nanjappa clinched silver behind Australia’s Daniel Repacholi, who won the gold with 199.5 points. Nanjappa had 198.2, while England’s Mick Gault took the bronze with 176.5.
The 38-year-old was leading until the fourth round with a combined score of 100.9 but a poor fifth round — 17.7 — saw Repacholi go ahead of the Banglorean. Though he had a better sixth round than Repacholi, the Melbourne-born shooter maintained his lead to clinch the gold.
Nanjappa, who gave up the sport between 2003-09 until his father encouraged him to take it up again, had earlier advanced to the final after topping qualification, while compatriot Om Prakash narrowly missed out, finishing ninth.