Archer Harvinder Singh stormed into the pre-quarterfinals of the Men's Individual Recurve Open by beating Italian Stefano Travisani 6-5 via a shootout in a 1/16 Elimination duel at the Tokyo Paralympic Games here on Friday.Harvinder, who bagged a gold medal at the Asian Para Games in Jakarta, Indonesia in 2018, won the first two sets and taken a 4-0 lead, claiming them 27-24 and 26-22, when his Italian opponent came back strongly to take the third set 27-26 at the Yumenoshima Ranking Field.The duo bagged a point each (25-25) and the score was still in Harvinder's favour 5-3. However, Harvinder could manage only 8, 7, and 10 points on his final three arrows as Travisani won the fifth set 27-25 with three 9s as he tied the set scores 5-5 and took the match into a single-arrow shootout.
In the shootout, Harvinder, the 30-year-old with a doctorate in economics from Punjabi University, Patiala, shot a 10 while Travisani could manage only 7.Harvinder thus set up a pre-quarterfinal encounter with the Russian Paralympic Committee's (RPC) Bato Tsydendorzhiev later in the day.Harvinder, considered by experts in para archery as a bright prospect after his victory in the Asian Para Games in Jakarta, was placed 21st after the ranking round held on August 27.Sports News, Tokyo Olympics, Tokyo Olympic Games, Olympic Games, Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games