National shotgun selection: Kynan, Manisha on top at trap trials
Jun 18, 2023
Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh) [India], June 18 : Olympian Kynan Chenai took the sole lead in the men's Trap even as local favourite Manisha Keer went into pole position in the women's competition, at the end of day two of qualification in the fourth National Selection Trials (Shotgun), currently underway at Bhopal's M.P. State Shooting Academy range.
Kynan, after scoring a perfect 50 in two rounds on Friday, missed two birds in the two rounds on Saturday, the same as overnight joint leader Bhowneesh Mendiratta, but took the sole lead on account of a perfect 25 finish in his fourth round whereas Bhowneesh had scores of 24 each on the day. Manisha shot rounds of 22 and 24 in women's Trap, to lead the field with a score of 90.
Both the fields come back on Sunday for the fifth and final qualification round before the top six make it to the final. In the men's Trap, the likes of Prithviraj Tondaiman, Shardul Vihan and Lakshay Sheoran are presently inside the top six with former world champion Manavjit Sandhu also in contention. He is currently placed eighth with a score of 94.
In women's Trap, Rajeshwari Kumari is second with 89, with the likes of Shagun Chowdhary and Sabeera Haris also in the top six contentions.
The scores of these trials will go a long way towards booking Indian team places for key upcoming tournaments like the World Championships and the Asian Games, among others.
