Second-tier international tournaments are traditionally the proving ground for up-and-comers – often a chance for a B-team to gain valuable major event experience.
India didn’t get the memo.
World Archery Champion Aditi Swami, Olympic quota place winner Dhiraj Bommadevara and the country’s best-known athlete in the sport – you know who – are all on the entry list for this week’s Asia Cup tilt in Iraq.
Deepika Kumari became a mother at the end of 2022 and missed out on the team in 2023.
The former world number one and 2010 Commonwealth Games Champion is back early in 2024, having topped the first round of national trials in January. (The final selection event is scheduled for 10-17 March in Sonepat.)
With two team quota places to the upcoming Olympics being awarded on world ranking, India has its top squad on a plane to Baghdad and a tickets to Paris squarely in its sights.
