Asian Games champion Rahi Sarnobat finishes top in women's 25m pistol at national shooting trials

Asian Games champion and Tokyo Olympics bound Rahi Sarnobat won the women’s 25m pistol event at national shooting trials on Wednesday. Sarnobat beat a formidable finals field comprising of fellow Tokyo quota holders Manu Bhaker and Chinki Yadav, besides senior women’s sports pistol shooters and India internationals Annu Raj Singh and Anisa Sayyed. Sarnobat shot 36 out of a possible 50 in the finals, to outgun Madhya Pradesh’s Chinki, who managed a score of 34 in the T1 trials. Among the 10 series of 5-shots each, Rahi shot two perfect 5’s and three series of 4’s to clinch the match. Haryana’s Bhaker, who had earlier topped the qualifying round with a score of 582, eventually finished third with a score of 27 in the finals. At the shotgun ranges, overnight leaders Lakshay Sheoran and Rajeshwari Kumari, won the men’s and women’s T1 Trap competition respectively. Haryana’s Lakshay prevailed over Rajasthan’s Adhiraj Rathore 46-42 in the finals. Telangana’s Kynan Chenai, who had topped qualifying with a solid 121, shot 29 in the finals to finish fourth behind Air India’s Zoravar Singh Sandhu. In the women’s trap event, it was Punjab’s Rajeshwari all the way, as she not only topped qualifying with a 110, but also beat the finals field comprehensively. Her finals score of 43, was a massive seven points clear of second-placed Shreyasi Singh of Bihar. In the Junior T1 Trap trials, Shapath Bharadwaj of Uttarakhand won the men’s competition while Delhi’s Kirti Gupta triumphed in the women’s event.