Shanghai

The Indian men's and women's recurve archery teams bowed out of medal contention at the World Cup Stage 2 here on Thursday, with the men finishing fourth and the women exiting in the pre-quarterfinals.

The men's team of Dhiraj Bommadevara, Atanu Das, and Tarundeep Rai, seeded seventh, lost the bronze-medal match to the USA 3-5.

They narrowly lost the first set 56-57, with an arrow in the 8-ring proving costly. The American trio of Christian Stoddard, Brady Ellison, and Jack Williams then took a commanding 4-0 lead after dominating the second set 56-52.

The Indians faltered under pressure, shooting two arrows into the 7-ring and mixing two 9s and two 10s, including one X (closest to the centre).

Trailing 0-4, India fought back in the third set, edging the Americans 55-54.

However, their hopes of forcing a shoot-off were dashed as the fourth set ended in a 56-56 tie, with another crucial arrow landing in the 8-ring.

Earlier, the Indian men lost a tight semifinal to France in a shoot-off, 4-5 (25-26), relegating them to the bronze-medal match.

In the women's section, the team of Deepika Kumari, Ankita Bhakat, and Anshika Kumari, who looked the most promising with a third-place qualification finish, made a shock exit in the pre-quarterfinals, losing to 14th-seeded Mexico 4-5 (26-27) in the shoot-off.

The Indian women started poorly with three 8s and a 7, losing the first set 49-50.

They followed up with another below-par round, dropping the second set 52-54 after again shooting three 8s.

Trailing 0-4, they posted a modest 52 in the third set, but Mexico faltered even more, managing just 45.

India capitalised with a 55-48 win in the fourth set to push the match into a shoot-off.

However, the Mexicans pipped the Indians in the decider 27-26 to seal their place in the quarters.

While India's recurve teams continue to struggle in pressure moments, their compound counterparts have been far more consistent.

On Wednesday, the top-ranked Indian men's and women's compound teams assured the country of two medals by reaching their respective finals, where they will face Mexico.

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The contrasting fortunes once again highlighted India's urgent need for the revival of recurve squads in the lead-up to the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028.