Teenager Mane wins 10m air rifle gold

Dehradun, Jan 31: World junior champion Parth Mane held his nerves to beat teammate Rudranksh Patil en route the men’s 10m air rifle gold as Maharashtra registered a 1-2 finish at the 38th National Games here on Friday.
Services’ Kiran Jadhav won the bronze.
The 17-year-old Mane produced a commanding performance to hold the lead after every series barring one.
Remaining unruffled throughout the final despite the presence of more experienced shooters around him, Mane fired consistently and was able to overcome the blip of logging 9.9 and 10.0 with his 12th and 14th shots.
Six of his next 10 shots earned him 10.7 points or more.
Rudranksh breathed down his neck after 20 shots, only 0.6 points behind, but Mane overcame the sustained pressure from his senior.
Rudranksh scored 42.2 points with his last four shots but Mane responded with 42.4 points, including rounds of 10.8 and 10.7.
Mane scored a total of 252.6 points, 0.4 points better than the score that fetched the Paris 2024 Olympics gold medal in this category.
While Mane was consistent throughout the final and rarely let the lead slip from his grasp, Rudranksh’s shooting during the elimination round caught the eye.
He had earned India an Olympic quota by winning the World Championships in 2022.
Arjun Babuta of Punjab, who was within striking distance of the lead after 16 shots, was let down by a couple of 10.4s to finish fourth.
Jadhav was trailing in the fourth spot but a 10.8 under pressure on the 20th shot saw him edge out Paris 2024 Olympian in the medal race.
Fourth in qualification, Paarth Makhija of Delhi finished fifth spot, while Sandeep Singh of Services, who competed in the 2024 Olympics, finished sixth.
Assam’s Hriday Hazarika, a 2018 World Junior Champion, was unable to capitalise on the window of opportunity that opened up when Sandeep shot a 9.8 at the start of the eliminations. (PTI)