Suruchi, Saurabh clinch 10m pistol titles at national selection trials

Suruchi Inder Singh continued her remarkable form this season, finishing on top in the T4 10m Pistol Women’s event, while Olympian Saurabh Chaudhary claimed the men’s title on the final day of the National Selection Trials 3 & 4 (Rifle & Pistol) for Group ‘A’ athletes, held at the Trishul Shooting Range, Maharana Pratap Sports College, Raipur.

Both athletes also topped their respective qualification rounds with impressive scores of 588 and 587, respectively.

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Suruchi dominated the finals from the start and finished with a score of 244.3 — 3.1 points ahead of Anjali Shekhawat, who secured second place. The experienced Rahi Sarnobat clinched another podium finish with a score of 221.6.

Olympians Manu Bhaker and Esha Singh finished in fourth and fifth places, respectively, with scores of 202.5 and 179.6. Sainyam, K.M. Priyanka Patel, and D. Padma completed the final lineup.

In the qualification round, Suruchi shot a brilliant 588-20x to finish ahead of Anjali (584-25x) and Rahi (579-23x). Priyanka Patel (579-18x), Sainyam (579-16x), Manu (577-21x), D. Padma (577-21x), and Esha (577-18x) rounded off the top eight.

“There’s really no big secret to how I shoot. I don’t look at the clock or think about how fast I’m going. I just keep shooting until it’s done. The rhythm takes over, everything flows naturally, and that’s probably what helps me stay focused. For now, I’m looking forward to the Haryana State Championships, and then we head into the national camp. Step by step, I just want to keep doing my best,” said Suruchi after her double wins at the trials.

In the men’s final, Saurabh secured the top spot with a score of 245.7 — just 0.4 points ahead of Subhash Sihag, who finished at 245.3. Aditya Malra took third place with a score of 223.5. T3 winner Samrat Rana finished fourth, while Ujjawal Malik, Ajay Kumar Ambawat, Amit Sharma, and Rajan Tomar completed the final lineup.

Earlier in qualification, Saurabh led the field with a score of 587. The competition for the top eight spots was fierce, with Ujjawal (583-22x), Rajan Tomar (583-21x), Amit Sharma (582-24x), Subhash Sihag (582-22x), Ajay Kumar (582-19x), Aditya (582-18x), and Samrat (582-17x) making it to the finals.