Manu Bhaker handed shock defeat by Suruchi Singh in fight for gold, India start strong with 3 medals on opening day

India had a brilliant start at the ISSF World Cup in Lima, Peru, winning three medals on the first day of the competition. Suruchi Singh continued her amazing form by winning gold in the Women's 10m Air Pistol event, while star shooter Manu Bhaker bagged the silver.

Manu Bhaker lauds India's rising shooting talent

Suruchi Singh, who is just 18 years old and from Jhajjar, shot a final score of 243.6 to win her second consecutive World Cup gold. She beat double Olympic medallist Manu Bhaker, who scored 242.3. China's Yao Qianxun won the bronze medal.

"I am happy to see more Indian shooters coming up and doing very well, especially at the international stage. It makes me really happy and I feel India is going in the right direction," Manu Bhaker said after the match.

"We all are familiar with Suruchi's name. She did exceptionally well in Buenos Aires (World Cup) as well as here. So, I am really happy for her and I hope that this continues for a long time. And, along with the youngsters, I hope that I also keep the pace up," she added.

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In the final, Suruchi started strong and quickly moved into the top positions. China's Yao took the early lead, but Suruchi stayed calm and focused. As the shots went on, she kept improving and eventually moved ahead of Manu in the final stages. Manu had a couple of low-scoring shots in the middle which cost her the gold.

This gold is Suruchi's second straight World Cup win in this event, after her first in Buenos Aires earlier this month. She had also won a bronze medal in the mixed team event with Saurabh Chaudhary in that competition.

In the Men's 10m Air Pistol event, Saurabh Chaudhary secured a bronze medal for India. With one gold, one silver, and one bronze on the opening day, India are currently on top of the medal standings. China are in second place with one gold and one bronze. Brazil are placed third with one silver to their name.