India's shooting contingent continued its impressive run at the ISSF World Cup as the mixed team pair of Manu Bhaker and Samrat Rana produced a strong performance to secure a silver medal in the 10m air pistol mixed team event on Saturday.
The Indian duo came agonisingly close to winning gold before eventually settling for silver after a closely fought final against the reigning world champion Chinese pair.
Manu Bhaker and Samrat Rana fall just short of gold in thrilling final
Manu and Samrat finished second after narrowly losing to China's Yao Qianxun and Hu Kai by just 0.3 points in the gold medal match.
The Indian pair endured a slow start and were placed third after the opening series. However, Manu found her rhythm in the second series, helping India climb into contention before both shooters steadily reduced the deficit against the Chinese team.
The momentum shifted dramatically in India's favour during the first elimination phase when Manu Bhaker and Samrat Rana opened up a healthy 2.2-point lead over their opponents.
At one stage, the silver medallists looked firmly on course for gold, but a few costly shots in the latter stages allowed the Chinese pair to stage a comeback and take control of the contest.
Despite a late push from the Indians, they were unable to overturn the deficit and ultimately finished with the silver medal.
India finish second in medal tally as shooters impress
The silver medal further strengthened India's campaign at the ISSF World Cup, helping the nation finish second in the overall medal standings.
India concluded the competition with two gold medals and two silver medals, trailing only China, who topped the table with four gold and three bronze medals.
Earlier in the qualification round, the Indian pair had shown excellent consistency to book their place in the medal stages and remained among the strongest contenders throughout the event.
The second Indian mixed pistol team, featuring Suruchi Singh and Shravan Kumar, finished 10th in qualification and missed out on a place in the medal round.
Meanwhile, India's 10m air rifle mixed team combinations also failed to reach the podium. The pair of Elavenil Valarivan and Arjun Babuta ended 14th, while Arya Borse and Shahu Tushar Mane finished 16th.