India's pistol hopes falter in Nagoya; coach Ronak Pandit criticises qualifiers
India’s women’s pistol team underperformed in the 10m air pistol qualification at the Asian Games in Nagoya on September 23, 2026, with Esha Singh finishing 15th and Suruchi Phogat 26th, while skeet shooters secured a medal to prevent India ending the day without one. Pistol coach and India’s High Performance Director Ronak Pandit criticised the display.
What had been anticipated as a strong day for India at the shooting range instead saw two leading contenders fail to advance, producing scores low enough to cost the team a podium finish. The women’s 10m air pistol has been a reliable source of medals for India, including a gold-silver double in the previous edition, and Esha Singh entered the event as the silver medallist from Hangzhou; Suruchi Phogat was described in the report as being "on a roll in the last 18 months." The collective shortfall in qualification left expectations unmet.
“There is pressure on everyone, but this performance is unpardonable. It’s not like the other countries have any advantage. There is no point in pointing fingers at any individual, but overall, this was not what we expected, what they are capable of... this should not have happened,” pistol coach and India’s High Performance Director Ronak Pandit told The Hindu, mincing no words.
“Pressure is what you have been training for all these years. It’s there every time you go out to represent the country, regardless of the competition. But with what we have been shooting not only in training but also in competitions over the last two years, these scores are not acceptable. I have always said that a medal is not in our control; performances are. If you shoot 595 and there are 10 shooters scoring higher, that’s bad luck. But scoring 560s-570s is not just inexcusable; it’s insufficient to even dream of a medal,” he added.
The Indian trio, including Manu Bhaker, managed 1719 points with 44 inner 10s, losing out on a bronze to Vietnam by two inner 10s. “The gold for China [in team] came with 1735 points, something that is par for us at other times even with average shooting,” Pandit said.
On the flip side, the report noted the skeet shooters recovered the overall situation for India by delivering a medal, ensuring the day did not finish without any hardware for the country.
“There will be a detailed debriefing to figure out what happened, but I really hope this comes as a reality check for the youngsters who might have believed they were unbeatable. Sports has a way of humbling anyone who takes it for granted,” he signed off.