Paralympics, archery ranking round: Rakesh finishes 3rd; Shyam at 21st spot

India's ace compound archer Rakesh Kumar finished 3rd in the men's individual archery ranking round, while Shyam Sundar Swami finished at the 21st position at the Yumenoshima Ranking Field

India's ace compound archer Rakesh Kumar finished 3rd in the men's individual archery ranking round, while Shyam Sundar Swami finished at the 21st position here at the Yumenoshima Ranking Field on Friday.

Rakesh Kumar gathered a personal best of 699 points out of a possible 720, hitting 53 10s and 17 X's in his 72 arrows. While Shyam Sundar Swami ended with a season-best of 682 points in the field.

The Indian duo of Rakesh Kumar and Shyam Sundar Swami was not only competing for a better seed in the men's individual event but they also had their eyes set on the possible mixed event chance with Jyoti Balyan.

Rakesh Kumar endured a challenging day as he kept moving up and down the leaderboard throughout the event. The Indian archer started his day very well as he shot 59, 57, 59 in the first three rounds, meanwhile Swami shot a decent 55, 57, and 55 to open the event.

Rakesh Kumar ended the first half in 8th position however Shyam Sundar Swami stayed at 26th position with 337 points.

Rakesh then dramatically shifted his gears in the second half as he consistently aimed at the bull's eye to climb into the top-5. He shot 58, 58 and 59 to start the second essay. Swami also gained some ground as he moved to the 22nd spot after four rounds.

After another brilliant 59 and a perfect 60 in the fourth and fifth set, Rakesh moved into the 3rd spot. He ended the ranking event after shooting 57 in the last round.