Archery Premier League: Marathas prove mighty, bag title

Mighty Marathas clinched the Archery Premier League (APL) title after defeating Kakatiya Knights 6-2 in the Season 2 final at People’s Plaza on Sunday.

Led by a sensational performance from Dhiraj Bommadevara, who finished the final off with an arrow into the inner X-ring, Marathas bounced back from a defeat against Knights in the first qualifier earlier in the day.

They did well to beat Prithviraj Yodhas in the second qualifier and took that momentum into the final, where Dhiraj shot 79 out of 80 and Mike Schloesser scored 80 out of the possible 80.

After Knights and Marathas split the first set, Dhiraj shot two inner-10s to put his team in the lead. Neeraj Chauhan and Dhiraj stepped up in the third set, where points were shared again.

With Knights under pressure to bag the final set and force a shootoff, all four of Nico Wiener, Jyothi Surekha Vennam, Elia Canales and Neeraj could only shoot 9s.

Marathas scored a breathtaking 79 to seal the contest in style.

The mantra behind Marathas’ triumph? “Believing in each other, keeping patience, and attack attack attack,” Dhiraj said.

“To be honest, the truth is that we changed nothing after losing (to Knights in the qualifier). That is the beauty of this team.”

The scores: Final: Mighty Marathas bt Kakatiya Knights 6-2 (75-75, 77-76, 75-75, 79-73).

Qualifier 1: Knights tied with Marathas 4-4 (75-73, 75-76, 76-77, 77-76) (Knights won 2-0 in the shootoff).

Qualifier 2: Marathas bt Prithviraj Yodhas 5-3 (74-78, 76-76, 77-72, 78-76).