Shooting Trials: Saurabh Chaudhary returns to Indian team; Sarabjot misses out

The Indian domestic shooting trials for the upcoming international circuit concluded with the final trial (T2) of the men's and women's air pistol categories at the Dr. Karni Singh Shooting Range in New Delhi on Friday.

Varun Tomar continued his dominance, winning the men's air pistol T2 trial, while Meenu Pathak ended Suruchi’s winning streak to claim the women's air pistol title.

Varun had a challenging qualification round, securing the last available spot (8th) in the final with a score of 580. However, he bounced back strongly, shooting an impressive 239.8 to secure the title.

Sarabjot Singh (237.9) and Saurabh Chaudhary (217.2) finished in second and third places, respectively.

After the two trials, Saurabh Chaudhary topped the national rankings and secured his place in the Indian team. However, Paris Olympic medallist Sarabjot Singh missed out, dropping to 8th position.

Ravinder Singh and Varun Tomar are ranked second and third nationally and are likely to join Saurabh on the international circuit in the coming months.

Meenu stops Suruchi's winning run

In the women's air pistol event, Delhi’s Meenu Pathak clinched the title, ending Suruchi’s winning run. Meenu delivered a stellar performance, scoring 243.1 in the final, while Suruchi had to settle for second place with a score of 241.4.

Double Olympic medalist Manu Bhaker missed out on a podium finish, ending in sixth place in the T2 final. Esha Singh secured third place, completing the podium for the women's air pistol event.

Despite missing out in the final, Manu Bhaker (580) and Suruchi (582) performed well in the qualification round, finishing third and second, respectively.

After the trials, Suruchi topped the national rankings and is set to make her senior international debut next month. Manu Bhaker and Saniyam secured the second and third spots in the rankings, respectively.