Archery World Cup Final: Deepika Kumari knocked out in first round
Deepika Kumari was the only Indian to have made the cut to the World Cup Final.
India's Deepika Kumari made an first round exit from the Archery World Cup Final on Sunday. The four-time silver medallist was beaten by Chinese Taipei's Tan Ya-ting in straight sets.
The former World No.1 Deepika looked a pale shadow of her former self against the Rio Olympics nemesis from Chinese Taipei, who put up a superlative display to seal the match 6-0 at the Stadio dei Marmi. Deepika was the lone Indian to have made the cut to the World Cup Final draw of eight by virtue of her two quarterfinal finishes in the four World Cups this year. The archer from Taiwan, who had eliminated Deepika in the Olympics pre-quarterfinal last year, started off with two perfect 10s to take the Indian by surprise in the first set.
Ya-ting shot 10-9-10 to set an early momentum, while Deepika was a slow-starter with 8-9-10 and never really overcame from the first set jitters. The Olympic bronze medallist shot a sensational 30 out of 30 in the second set, to which Deepika (25) had no answer to. Continuing her impressive form, Ya-ting shot 28 in the third set and blew away any chance of the Indian's bid for a fifth final.