India’s pistol shooters delivered a significant boost to the country’s campaign at the ISSF World Championships 2026 in Doha, with Esha Singh leading the charge to the women’s 25m pistol team gold alongside Manu Bhaker and Divya Subbaraju on Tuesday. Backed by a strong recovery in the rapid-fire stage, the Indian trio finished with a combined score of 1761 to finish ahead of South Korea and Vietnam, while Esha and Manu also secured places in the individual final.
The Indian team registered 1761-68x to claim the gold medal, finishing 13 points ahead of South Korea, which settled for silver with 1748-66x. Vietnam completed the podium with 1745-54x. Esha spearheaded India’s performance with an individual qualification score of 590-25x, followed by Manu with 587-24x and Divya with 584-19x. The result marked another important achievement for India’s pistol shooting contingent, with the team combining individual consistency and a strong finish to secure the world championship title.
The performance was particularly significant for Esha, who recovered impressively after a relatively modest opening day to finish among the leading shooters in the individual qualification standings. Her effort also ensured that India had two representatives in the eight-shooter final. The two-day qualification round saw Esha produce a remarkable turnaround after managing 292 in Monday’s Precision round. The 21-year-old responded emphatically in the Rapid round, recording three impressive series of 100, 98 and 100 to finish with 298 and take her overall tally to 590.
Her performance placed her third in the individual qualification standings, behind Germany’s Doreen Vennekamp, who topped the field with 592, and Hungary’s Veronika Major, who finished second with 591. Manu Bhaker also demonstrated her ability to recover under pressure. After registering 289 in the Precision round, the double Olympic medallist found her rhythm in the Rapid stage, shooting 99, 99 and 100 to finish with 587 points. Manu secured sixth place in the qualification standings, joining Esha in the final.
Divya, meanwhile, narrowly missed the individual medal round after finishing 10th with 584 points. The qualification results highlighted the importance of the Rapid stage, with both Esha and Manu improving considerably to secure their places among the eight finalists. While the team gold provided India with a major achievement, the individual final brought a more challenging outcome for the two Indian shooters. Manu produced a competitive performance to finish fourth with 27 hits, narrowly missing out on an individual podium finish. Esha, meanwhile, finished eighth with 11 hits.
The top three positions were particularly important because the individual medal winners in the Olympic shooting events at the championships earned quota places for their respective National Olympic Committees for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games, subject to allocation limits. With neither Indian shooter finishing on the podium, India missed the opportunity to secure another women’s 25m pistol quota place through this event.
Nevertheless, Manu’s fourth-place finish and Esha’s qualification for the final provided valuable experience against some of the world’s leading pistol shooters. The women’s 25m pistol team gold adds to an encouraging medal campaign for India in Doha, where the shooting contingent has produced podium finishes across multiple disciplines. Jaypal Malviya had earlier secured India’s first shooting quota place for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics at these championships after winning silver in the men’s 10m air pistol event.
India also registered success in the men’s 50m pistol, with Ravinder Singh, Saurabh Chaudhary and Amanpreet Singh winning team gold. Ravinder additionally secured individual silver in the event. The women’s 10m air rifle team of Elavenil Valarivan, Sonam Maskar and Sambhavi Kshirsagar also claimed silver, while Niveditha Veloor Nair won bronze in the women’s 25m standard pistol. Adding to India’s medal tally, Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar, Akhil Sheoran and Niraj Kumar secured bronze in the men’s 50m rifle three positions team event on Tuesday.
India’s women’s 25m pistol team gold in Doha is an important statement of the country’s strength in the discipline. However, the contrasting individual outcomes underline the difference between winning team honours and securing Olympic qualification. Esha’s ability to recover from a difficult Precision round and Manu’s strong response in the Rapid stage demonstrated the depth of India’s pistol shooting talent. Their qualification for the individual final was another positive, even though neither could convert that opportunity into an individual medal or an LA 2028 quota place.
For Manu, who has already established herself as one of India’s most accomplished Olympic shooters, the fourth-place finish will be a narrow miss. For Esha, the experience of competing in a world championship final adds another important step to her international development. The bigger takeaway for Indian shooting is the need to maintain consistency across disciplines. While the pistol contingent has delivered several encouraging results in Doha, the rifle events have also presented challenges, including the controversy surrounding Sambhavi Kshirsagar’s disqualification.
With the Los Angeles Olympics approaching, India will need to convert its growing international presence into quota places. The women’s 25m pistol team gold provides a reason to celebrate, but the individual results also offer a reminder that the Olympic qualification race remains demanding.
