Esha wins 2 pistol medals while Anantjeet scripts history in skeet
Teen sensation Esha Singh was the toast of the day AS she won a team gold medal and individual silver in the 25-metres sports pistol event at the Asian Games in Hangzhou on Wednesday. On a day when the shooters were in full bloom, the biggest surprise came from the skeet shotgun ranges where Anantjeet Singh won silver medal.
To be sure, the shooters kept everyone busy and happy over the last few days in Hangzhou. The way medals have come in, first in team and now in individual events, there is every reason to believe the ghosts of the last Asian Games in Palembang have been forgotten. What did rankle to a large extent was Manu Bhaker not being able to do well in the individual sports pistol final. The shooter in her next bay was posing problems, not deliberately though.
Apparently, when the shooter in the next lane was squeezing the trigger, the “empties” (shells) were flying out from the pistol and hitting her shoulder. This seemed like ghosts from the past haunting Manu again. In the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, she had a weapon malfunction in the air pistol event and was not ready with a second weapon with a prepared grip.
Back to the success story of the day, the team gold in sports pistol, with Rhythm Sangwan as the third member, they raised the medal tally.
However, in the afternoon, it was all about Esha Singh. This girl at 18 has already been an over achiever. Talk to her, she is cool as a cucumber. “I have got the air pistol event to go as well, so for me this is nothing new,” said Esha.
On a day when she was interviewed multiple times, Esha was full of poise. “I know I have been around for a long time but I am just 18 and in college. I have worked hard to get here in shooting,” she said. Her father was cheering from the stands but that was the last thing which was bothering Esha or working in her favor.
“When you go out there into the shooting lane and look at the firing point, you are all alone. Nothing else matters. This is an individual sport and you just have to do it. So, yeah, I was not really noticing my Dad cheering from the stands,” Esha told this writer.
Asked about who her coach is, Esha replied very honestly. “When I began in Hyderabad as a youngster, I had to go to the Gun For Glory Academy in Hyderabad. Today if you ask me, Ved Prakash Sir (coach) helps me out with all the technical stuff in shooting,” she said.
On goals ahead, Esha Singh said she is her to stay. “I have the Asian Championship next month. I am aware of the Paris Olympics qualification also in mind,” added the short girl.
Does shooting in multiple events bother Esha? “I have been doing that for so long now, I am used to it. I shoot air, sports pistol and the mixed events. There is nothing like pressure,” she said.
At the skeet ranges, Anantjeet Singh Naruka exploded brilliantly to win two medals on Wednesday.
First, Anantjeet, a 25-year-old from Jaipur featured in the team bronze medal with Anagad Vir Singh Bajwa and Gurjoat Singh Khangura to win team bronze.
But the piece de resistance was in the skeet final where Anantjeet, supported by the SAI program, was in blazing form. He is not one of those shooters who had done very well in the junior events or World Cups. Then again, the Govt of India was not planning to clear this team till the last minute.
