Shanghai: Indian archery heads into another major event clouded by poor planning, lack of direction and the absence of a full-time foreign coach, an alarming situation in an Asian Games year, as a strong field assembles for World Cup Stage 2 beginning here on Tuesday.
With the Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan scheduled from September 19-October 4 approaching fast, India's build-up looks far from convincing.
The season began with a disappointing outing at the World Cup Stage 1 in Mexico, where the only saving grace was a gold medal from the women's compound team.
That result did little to hide deeper concerns.
Despite competing in a depleted field, with powerhouse South Korea skipping the event, India's recurve archers failed to step up.
It turned into a reality check as none of the leading names, including former Olympians Tarundeep Rai, Atanu Das, Dhiraj Bommadevara, Deepika Kumari and Ankita Bhakat could reach the medal rounds.
Das and Dhiraj managed pre-quarterfinal finishes before bowing out. The men's recurve team, seeded 10th, suffered an opening-round exit after losing to Spain in straight sets.
The women's team cleared the first hurdle but went down to Turkey in the quarterfinals.
In the individual section, Deepika, India's most decorated archer, exited in the second round.