Paris Olympics: Duo of Bopanna-Balaji crashes out after defeat in first round

Paris [France], July 29 (ANI): The Indian duo of Rohan Bopanna and N Sriram Balaji crashed out of the tennis men’s doubles event after conceding defeat in the first-round match at the ongoing Paris Olympics.

The Indian pair lost 7-5, 6-2, against French pair Gael Monfils and Edouard Roger-Vasselin in straight sets. The game lasted for 1 hour and 16 minutes.

The French duo converted two of their three break-point chances, enabling them to take a hard-fought first set. Meanwhile, Bopanna-Balaji made 15 unforced errors, which stopped them from taking control of the match.

In the second set, the French pair broke Bopanna-Balaji’s serve in the fourth and eighth games to clinch a straight win.

Earlier in the day, India bagged its first medal at the Paris Olympics after ace shooter Manu Bhaker sealed a bronze medal in the 10 Metre Women’s Air Pistol event.

The 22-year-old became the first Indian woman to win a medal in shooting at the Olympics.

Bhaker brought India’s first medal in the ongoing mega event as she won a bronze medal with a score of 221.7.

It was a redemption arc for Manu after her pistol malfunctioned at the Tokyo Olympics. She made history by becoming the first Indian woman in 20 years to reach a shooting final in an individual event of the Olympics since Suma Shirur in 2004.

South Korea’s Ye Jin clinched the gold medal with an Olympic record of 243.2 points. Her compatriot, Kim Yeji, settled for silver with 241.3 points.

On the opening day, Bhaker finished third in the qualification round of Women’s 10 Metre Air Pistol to qualify for the final at the ongoing Paris Olympics on Saturday. While Rhythm Sangwan failed to make her place in the final after finishing in 15th place.