Tokyo: Deepika Kumari continues to keep Indian hopes alive in archery after storming into the quarterfinals with a pair of wins on Wednesday.
After crushing Bhutan's Karma 6-0, the world no. 1, knocked out USA's Jennifer Mucino-Fernandez 6-4 in a round of 16 match-up to advance.
Deepika showed great composure in the fifth round after the game was tied at 2-2. She shot a pair of nines while Jennifer hit back-to-back eights. Though Deepika's final shot was an eight, Jennifer could only manage a nine in her final attempt to give the Indian a one-point win.
Meanwhile, Indian men were knocked out from the archery event earlier in the day. Pravin Jadhav and Tarundeep Rai hit a dead end in their round-of-32 matches.
Jadhav was crushed 0-6 by USA's Brady Ellison after Rai had fallen short (5-6) in his match against Israel's Italy Shanny.
Earlier, Rai had defeated Ukraine's Oleksii Hunbin 6-4 while Jadhav ousted ROC's Galsan Bazarzhapov 6-0 in their respective round-of-32 ties.
Meanwhile, South Korean archer Jang Minhee, already a gold medallist in the team competition and ranked second-top seed for the women's matchplay contest, suffered a surprise knockout, losing to an unheralded Japanese athlete Miki Nakamura.
Miki Nakamura beat Jang by 6-2, shooting more perfect 10s in their match-up, in hot, blustery conditions in Tokyo. The Japanese archer said the win was her first against a rival from South Korea, long-dominant in archery with the women's team matching their longest gold streak with nine straight medals in Tokyo.
"I was really nervous but trying to keep my pace. Wind was helping too, but I am going to be humble for the next round," Nakamura said, speaking after her win.
She said cheers from home fans and familiarity with Tokyo's weather were an advantage for her.
After the loss, South Korea's Jang choked up and was unable to answer reporters' questions before leaving the event. Her defeat came after teammate Kim Je Deok, nicknamed the 'archery genius', who won two golds in teams' events, also suffered a defeat in the men's individual round on Tuesday.
(With inputs from PTI)
