It was a great start for India at the ISSF World Cup Final in Doha to finish the season. Suruchi Singh with the help of her master class performance in the women’s 10m air pistol category won the gold medal and set a new junior world record of 245.1. Another Indian shooter, Sainyam also took part in this dream 1-2 by taking silver with 243.3.
The mark set by Suruchi was the one that made the other junior shooters feel envious; in 2019 Manu Bhaker had the junior world record with 241.7. The fans got stunned by the number, but the way she won the event was even more impressive. The 21-year-old girl kept her calm during the difficult times, and outshined all others in the field, and she also had an ample amount of lead when she finished.
This result also made India shot the weak rifle squad prize early in the day that by getting its tone in the first marquee boy opener. They got two of the first medals at the match which is also their usual way of rewarding the form and nerve of the shooters.
Instead of Suruchi, Sainyam arrived in Doha as one of the form shooters of 2024, shocking most people. Not only did she completely outshine everyone else on the World Cup circuit by winning four straight golds but also for some time gained the world No. 1 ranking in September-October. In Doha, Sanyam was gnats pee in the prelims and she had to do with the 2-duty among the 12 shooters that came to the last day.
The final was a gripping affair, which showed the restraint and control of all competitors. Suruchi maintained her roundness and then gradually decreased the shots to the size of the target face when she felt the pressure of one shooter leaving after each shot. Her last stage was a display of coolness while devastating the bullseye one by one, eventually, she posted the final score of 245.1 – a new junior world record and an absolute victory.
Though three-time Olympic shooter Manu Bhaker, with 578, made it into the final, she finished in the money round at 179.2. The new champion, moreover, happened to be from the same place as Bhaker, Jhajjar in Haryana. Besides the title, Suruchi got €5,000 for her first-place finish.
Bold charge of Sainyam brings an Indian 1-2.
If Suruchi was the one to make the bold move, Sainyam was the one to change the game. The 2023 junior world champion fought his way into the final as the last man at the 8th place who had scored 573, and then he took the lead by making a staggering mid-final run.
Sainyam´s breaking of 5 consecutive scores of 9.5 placed her in a challenging situation and allowed Suruchi to dominate it. However, Sainyam got herself together and went on to win the silver medal by scoring 243.3, thus, this event became a celebration of Indian female air pistol officials. Second place allowed her to win €4,000 as well as take a lot of experience from the big match.
Men’s 10m air pistol: turns, pressure and a bronze for India
The male finalists made the competition thrilling. The reigning world champion Samrat Rana was on his way to a magnificent finish, yet his few weak shots gave other competitors a chance. And it was China’s Hu Kai who was just behind Samrat at the Worlds that ended up with the gold.
Christian Reitz, the former Rio 2016 Olympic champion from Germany, came second, Samrat had to settle for the third place with a score of 221.5. Varun Tomar was very close to a medal but finally finished fourth with 201.2. In qualifying round, Tomar came sixth with 584, while Samrat went second after the 578 by Zoltan Fekete.
Samrat continued to move up the arc of success this season, being on the podium. As for Tomar, the final was a clear example that the closing series are of utmost importance in deciding the medals, especially in the cases of high-variance and high-pressure.
Rounding off the S’s is Suruchi Singh, a world number one in only her first full season of International shooting where she won three back to back WC 🥇 including in her debut WC. Let’s hear it for her 👏🇮🇳#Road2Doha#ISSFWorldCupFinal#ISSFWCF#ShootingStar#TeamIndia#Indiapic.twitter.com/dRb6Qaz6kQ
— NRAI (@OfficialNRAI) December 4, 2025
Rifle round: Rudrankksh and Babuta on the borderline of victory
It was hard luck when India’s rifle team lost by a whisker. The former world champion, Rudrankksh Patil, was on the top three men’s 10m air rifle when he reached the final but unluckily one shot turned out to be the sole disadvantage of the same. Rudrankksh scored 209.9 in the final, landing him in the fourth position.
Arjun Babuta, who was ranked third in the qualifying round with 633.3, finished sixth. The victor happens to be Sweden’s Victor Lindgren as he notched up 253.0 and also displayed great form. Sheng Lihao, the Chinese two-time Olympic champion, was the one who took the silver with 252.6 while Peni of Hungary gained the third position.
In the qualifying round, the competitors’ quality was evident. Sheng was the topper with 637.7, followed by Lindgren with 633.5 and Rudrankksh fourth with 631.9 in the final, making it a matter of every tenth from the very beginning.
Women’s 10m air rifle and shotgun update
In the women’s 10m air rifle final, Elavenil Valarivan was close to the top but could not make it and placed ninth in qualification with 630 scores. During the day the competition was very strong and it was the day consistency was required more than anything else.
In men’s trap, Zorawar Sandhu—one of the most seasoned shooters in India—after the first day was also in the ninth position with the same score of 70/75 (23, 24, 23). He has to go through two more qualification rounds for the final game that comprises six shots.
Impact of Suruchi’s world record on Indian shooting
The world junior record is not just a number but it is also an indicator of a person who can go to the finals, maintaining a good winning streak, and is not much affected by elimination shot pressure.
It displays the sang-froid which is building in Indian women’s pistol, with a flourishing list of athletes that are ready to compete on any platform. It will be just like opening the door for the from the very beginning of the competition.
With the early hits of Suruchi and Sainyam and Samrat on the podium, the Indian campaign for the ISSF World Cup Finals is off to a great start. Doha is a city where the athletes converting half-chances often get rewarded. India was exactly one of these cases on the event opening day.
