Atanu Das Enters Pre Quarterfinals after Spectacular Shoot Off Win against South Korea’s Oh Jinhyek

Atanu Das Enters Pre Quarterfinals after Spectacular Shoot Off Win against South Korea’s Oh Jinhyek

Atanu Das at Tokyo Olympics

India’s Atanu Das has made an incredible comeback and is through to the pre quarterfinals of men’s Archery at Tokyo Olympics after registering an incredible win against South Korea’s Oh Jinhyek in the round of 16.

Atanu first faced off against Yu-Cheng Deng of Chinese Taipei in the round of 32. Das won after a pressure filled match, reigning supreme 6-4. He took a clear win in the first set, after shooting a 10 and winning the set 27-26. The second set was not enough for Atanu to win, despite a solid score of 27, as he lost 27-28. Atanu did not let the pressure get to him, as he won the third set with ease, shooting a 9,10,9. Deng fell short, as Das picked up the third set 28-26.

While Atanu shot strong in the fourth set, Deng delivered, and won the set 27-28. The score was tied at 4-4 and Atanu needed to win in order to move on to the next round. Das started off strong with a 10 followed by two 9s. A stray 7 by his opponent meant that Das had secured his place in the round of 16, and won the match 6-4. He would now face off against South Korea’s Oh Jinhyek, who would give Das tough competition for a place in the pre quarterfinals.

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Atanu Das Impresses, Wins in Shoot off after Incredible Performance

Atanu Das
Atanu Das at Tokyo Olympics

Oh Jinhyek is the 2012 London Olympics men’s archery champion, the 2012 Olympics men’s team bronze medallist, and most recently won a gold in the men’s team at the Tokyo Olympics. Das was going into the match strong, but South Korea was looking confident as they made their way into the first set.

Jinhyek took the first set, after a slightly shaky start from Atanu made him score a 8,8,9 which fell short and he lost 25-26. Atanu picked up momentum in his second round, and shot straight 9s. He managed to tie the set with Jinhyek, and the score was 1-3. The next round was a tie as well, as Atanu held his ground with a 27, and made the score 2-4.

The Korean needed to only win one set to go through to the next round. However, a poor 6 from him in the last shot, and consistent shots from Atanu did not allow him to do so, and the score was levelled at 4-4. The last round was a nail biter, with both the archers on their strongest game shooting 10,9,9. Atanu had forced a tie with the Olympic champion, and a shoot off would decide his fate.

Jinhyek shot first in the shoot off and delivered a strong 9 and Atanu needed a 10 to win. Das delivered when it mattered the most, shooting a perfect 10, securing his place in the round of 8 by defeating South Korea’s Oh Jinhyek. It was an incredible performance from the Indian. He will go up against Takaharu Furukawa, who was 46th in the individual ranking round, but has been on top of his game, as he won a silver in the men’s team archery just a few days ago.

Also read: Tokyo Olympics 2020: PV Sindhu cruises through to quarterfinals