The Asian Archery Championships 2025 opened with a dramatic and highly competitive recurve women’s qualification phase, one that saw India deliver its strongest team ranking in several years but also one that produced one of the biggest selection storylines of the tournament.
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While India finished an impressive second in the women’s team qualification behind powerhouse South Korea, the individual ranking round ended with national icon Deepika Kumari finishing as the fourth-ranked Indian, and therefore missing the three-member team line-up for the knockout matches. With team positions fixed strictly on ranking-round order, Deepika’s result meant India will proceed into the eliminations with Anshika Kumari, Ankita Bhakat, and Sangeeta forming the trio.
The 2025 Championships arrived two years after a strong 2023 campaign in which Indian recurve women had secured a team bronze behind South Korea and China. The 2023 women’s team podium saw Korea take gold with a quartet of Choi Mi-sun, An San, and Lim Si-hyeon, China finish with silver behind An Qixuan, Hailigan, and Li Jiaman, and India earn bronze through the combination of Ankita Bhakat, Bhajan Kaur, and Tisha Punia.
Individually, Korea swept the top two spots with Choi and Lim, while China’s Li Jiaman took bronze. With such a strong historical backdrop, 2025 began with South Korea again expected to dominate, while India were seen as top contenders for the medals.
The individual qualification round showed precisely that trend, with Korea occupying the top four positions. Jang Minhee (673), Nam Suhyeon (672), and Kim Surin (669), completing another Korean sweep of the front ranks.
India’s charge began with Anshika Kumari, who finished as the fifth-best archer overall with 660 points, a total built on clean shooting across both halves 333 in the first 70m round and 327 in the second. Her performance slotted India into the upper bracket of the knockout draw and placed her comfortably ahead of several archers from Chinese Taipei, Vietnam, and Malaysia. Close behind her came Ankita Bhakat, scoring 655, followed by Sangeeta, who shot 649 to secure the third Indian slot for the team event.
The talking point, however, was the placement that followed. Deepika Kumari, shooting 649 as well but with a lower X-count compared to Sangeeta, finished 12th overall and fourth among Indian archers, which meant she did not make the three-member team for the recurve women’s team eliminations.
The selection process, governed entirely by ranking-round standings, allowed no flexibility: only the top three scorers represent India in the team matchplay. Deepika’s exclusion becomes particularly significant given her long-standing role as India’s most decorated recurve archer, and her experience in high-pressure knockout matches. Yet, the consistency shown by Anshika, Ankita, and Sangeeta across 216 arrows meant that India’s final team was not only earned by the numbers but also aligned with recent form.
Their combined totals placed India second in the team qualification with 1964 points, substantially ahead of Chinese Taipei (1954) and Malaysia (1943). Korea, unsurprisingly, topped the table with 2020 points, shooting 95 tens and 31 Xs, a reflection of the precision that continues to set them apart in team recurve events. India’s total 80 tens and 32 Xs showed the trio’s balanced contribution, and their second seeding awarded them a bye into the quarterfinals, mirroring the structure in the compound men’s bracket.
In the knockout bracket, India now awaits the winner of Uzbekistan vs Kazakhstan in their quarterfinal. On the opposite half of the draw, Korea will face either Bangladesh or Iran, while China seeded sixth must take on the winner of Malaysia vs Chinese Taipei. Vietnam and Malaysia also feature prominently in the upper bracket, but India’s second-place ranking ensures a relatively stable path until at least the semifinal stage. Given India’s ascent into the top two of the qualification standings, their prospects of repeating or improving upon their 2023 bronze-medal finish remain strong, even if they must do so without Deepika’s veteran presence.
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What makes India’s 2025 performance especially noteworthy is that it highlights both the promise of the new generation and the compressed competitive gap among the top Asian teams behind Korea. Anshika’s rise into the global top tier, Ankita’s experience as a multiple Asian-level finalist, and Sangeeta’s steady profile as a high-accuracy shooter collectively create a team with enough balance to compete against the likes of Chinese Taipei and Malaysia. Their numbers in the ranking round particularly the closeness between Ankita and Sangeeta reflect a unit capable of producing consistent sets in the knockout format.
Deepika’s fourth-place Indian finish, while significant, also underscores the depth within the Indian squad. In past years, Deepika’s spot in the team was almost a certainty; now, India is witnessing a changing of the guard, with younger archers pushing strongly for top-three positions. This shift is not a setback but rather a sign of the strengthening competitive landscape inside Indian recurve archery.
As India heads into the elimination rounds, their second-place ranking, strong individual placements, and the emergence of a new-look team provide a timely boost. With Korea still the dominant force in Asia and China capable of producing late-tournament surges, India’s pathway will require precision, composure, and the ability to convert narrow set margins.
However, the qualification phase has already shown that the Indian recurve women’s team in 2025 is deeper, more competitive, and more balanced than before even as one of its most iconic names watches the team event from the sidelines.
