Kakatiya Knights top standings as Archery Premier League title showdown approaches

The second round-robin phase of Archery Premier League season two concluded on Saturday 17 October, with Kakatiya Knights finishing top of the standings after a commanding 6-0 victory over Mighty Marathas.

Prithviraaj Yodhas also kept their title hopes alive with two crucial wins at People’s Plaza in Hyderabad, setting up a decisive final day on Sunday.

With both Knights and Marathas already assured of the top two positions, Saturday’s match served as a dress rehearsal for their qualifier.

Austrian compounder Nico Wiener and India’s Jyothi Surekha Vennam led the way for Knights, both shooting a perfect 60 out of 60 despite gusty conditions.

Marathas struggled in the opening sets, scoring below 70 in each, but improved after introducing Dhiraj Bommadevara and Mexico’s Alejandra Valencia. Their 74 in the third set, however, was not enough to stop Knights, who responded with 78 to complete the 6-0 sweep. Knights had rested in-form recurver Neeraj Chauhan, giving the home franchise another confidence boost ahead of the qualifier.

Yodhas secured their place in the final day with a 6-0 win over Rajputana Royals, before beating Chero Archers 5-1 in the first eliminator.

Sixteen-year-old recurve archer Gatha Khadake and Mexican world number two compounder Andrea Becerra were instrumental in both victories. Khadake scored 56 out of 60 in each match and was named the day’s best recurve female archer, while Becerra was flawless across the two contests, finishing with a perfect 120 out of 120.

Against Chero, Yodhas took control after sharing the opening set 75-75, with a strong second set and a 79 in the third securing the 5-1 win.

Chero had earlier booked their place in the eliminator with a dramatic shoot-off victory over Chola Chiefs after the teams finished level at 4-4. World number one compounder Mathias Fullerton was the only archer to hit the inner yellow ring in the hit-or-miss tie-breaker.

Yodhas will now face the loser of Sunday’s qualifier between Knights and Marathas, with the winner advancing to the final later that day.

The second season of the Archery Premier League features six franchises and 48 archers – 36 Indian athletes and 12 international stars – competing in a mixed recurve and compound team format.

The season concludes on Sunday 18 October, when the remaining teams compete for the title.

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