ISSF World Cup 2025 Buenos Aires: Saurabh Chaudhary struggles on return, No medals for Indian shooters on Day 1

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India's shooting campaign at the ISSF World Cup 2025 in Buenos Aires got off to a lacklustre start, with the returning Saurabh Chaudhary unable to find his rhythm and the rest of the contingent falling short of the podium.

Competing in his first international event in two years, Chaudhary never looked in control during the 10m air pistol qualification round. A sluggish opening series of 94 put him on the back foot, and despite recovering with two strong 98s later, he ended 18th out of 46 with a total score of 577 -- well outside the cut for the final.

India's hopes in the men's 10m air pistol briefly flickered through Varun Tomar and Ravinder Singh, both of whom made it to the final round with identical qualifying scores of 580. Ravinder edged ahead into seventh place owing to superior inner-10 hits, while Tomar slotted into the eighth spot.

But their challenge fizzled out in the medal round. Ravinder, after a promising start, struggled with consistency and exited in sixth place. Tomar, who mounted a late surge, couldn't make up for a sluggish start and bowed out in fifth after 18 shots.

The event was dominated by China's Hu Kai, who claimed gold with commanding precision. Russia's Anton Aristarkhov, competing under a neutral flag, secured silver, while Switzerland's Jason Solari took bronze.

In women's skeet, Raiza Dhillon had a rollercoaster outing. She began her qualifying campaign on a high, hitting a perfect 25 in her first round. However, she faltered in the next with three missed targets, dropping her to 10th -- outside the cut for the final.

With Day 1 ending without any medals, India will turn its attention to the 50m rifle 3 positions events on Friday. The men's line-up includes Chain Singh, Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar and Niraj Kumar, while the women's team features Olympians Sift Kaur Samra and Shriyanak Sadangi alongside Ashi Chouksey. After Thursday's disappointment, India will be hoping this experienced group can deliver the country's first medal at the Buenos Aires World Cup.