India announces squad for first two World Cup stages

Deepika Kumari won three Archery World Cup Final silver medals from 2011 to 2013. In 2014, she failed to qualify for the season-ending tournament.

She missed out on a call-up to the Indian team at the start of the year and struggled to find her form throughout most of the season.

But, having taken a trip to her hometown coach and switching equipment – back to the set-up that collected her so much silverware – Kumari found her form. At the last stage of the 2014 season, she climbed the podium three out of a possible three times, in the individual, team and mixed team events.

All signs point to Deepika having carried her rediscovered penchant for shooting strong into 2015.

The Archery Association of India announced that Kumari, veteran man Jayanta Talukdar and Incheon winner Abhishek Verma – who won the first ever Asian Games compound men’s gold medal – will lead the Indian squad at the first two Archery World Cup stages of the year.

The team selection was based on the results of trials conducted in New Delhi earlier in the month.

IndiaN squad: SHANGHAI, ANTALYA 2015

• Recurve men – Vishwas, Jayanta Talukdar, Mangal Singh Champia and Ranjit Naik
• Recurve women – Snehal Divakar, Deepika Kumari, Madhu Vedwan and Satbir Kaur
• Compound men – Abhishek Verma, Ch Jignas, Rajat Chauhan and M Chinglensana
• Compound women – Purvasha Sudhir Shende, Jyothi Vennam, Trisha Deb and P Lily Chanu