Anish Bhanwala wins 25m rapid fire pistol silver medal at Asian Championships; team also wins silver

Shooter Anish Bhanwala secured a silver medal in the rapid fire pistol event at the Asian Shooting Championships in Shymkent, Kazakhstan on Wednesday. The 22-year-old Olympian scored 35 points, finishing just one point behind China's Su Lianbofan, while Korea's Lee Jaekyoon took bronze.Bhanwala, who initially held a one-point lead after the first four series, improved upon his previous bronze medal from the Changwon Asian Championships two years ago. The 2018 Commonwealth Games gold medalist entered the finals after placing sixth in Tuesday's precision round with 290 points.In Wednesday's rapid fire round, the Haryana marksman demonstrated exceptional skill by shooting 293 to advance to fourth place with a total of 583 points. During the six-man final, Bhanwala led 18-17 against Su Lianbofan but missed crucial shots in the remaining three series.The Indian team comprising Bhanwala, Adarsh Singh, and Neeraj Kumar claimed team silver with 1738 points on Tuesday, while South Korea secured gold with 1748 points. Another Indian competitor, Adarsh Singh, finished fifth in the individual event.In the non-Olympic men's 50m pistol discipline, the Indian team of Amanpreet Singh, Yogesh Kumar, and Ravinder Singh won silver with 1633 points. Iran captured gold with 1652 points, while South Korea earned bronze with 1619 points.The junior division saw success as well, with the men's 50m pistol team securing gold. The trio of Abhinav Choudhary, Umesh Choudhary, and Mukesh Nelavalli totaled 1593 points in a two-team contest, with Kazakhstan taking second place with 1580 points.The 20-year-old Chinese winner Su Lianbofan's previous best achievement was a silver medal at this year's World Cup in Lima, Peru. The individual final for the men's 50m pistol event was scheduled for later in the day.