Misjudging last arrow cost Deepika World Cup archery gold

Jamshedpur: India`s top woman archer Deepika Kumari on Tuesday said she could have won the gold instead of a silver in the just concluded World Cup championship had she not misjudged while shooting the last arrow in the rains.

"It was my fault. I had to make a judgement in respect to all aspects of the competition including weather condition and wind speed. But I made a misjudgement before shooting the last arrow against the Korean rival (Bo Bae Ki) and lost by two points," Deepika, who was felicitated by the Tata Steel on her return to Jamshedpur today, told mediapersons here. Deepika came close to winning the World Cup final but went down to Olympic double gold medallist Bo Bae Ki to settle for a silver in the recurve women`s individual event in Tokyo on Sunday. "It was raining since morning and it was hard to shoot in rain," she said but hastened to add that it was no excuse as the weather condition was same for her rival as well. Asked how she felt after winning the silver following her dismal performance in the London Olympics in July, World no. 2 archer said she went to Japan with a relaxed mind and was determined to give her best in the competition, which was her first international event after the Olympics. Deepika said she learnt from the silly mistakes she had committed in London and reiterated her demand for appointing a psychologist to improve the players` confidence. "Unlike in Olympics, the expectations to win a medal was not there in Japan," Deepika, who is a Manager (Sports) of Tata Steel, said. The Commonwealth Games double gold medallist said it was the second time that she lost to Bo Bae Ki in the World Cup final after her defeat in China last year. Regarding her next championship, Deepika said she would now focus on the Senior National Championship to be held in Chennai in the last week of December. PTI