Bommadevara Is First Indian Man to Win World Cup Final

Dhiraj Bommadevara captured the recurve men's title at the 2026 Hyundai Archery World Cup Final in Saltillo, Mexico, on 13 September, becoming the first Indian man and only the second Indian archer ever to win the season-ending championship.

Six arrows in the desert heat

The gold medal match against Japan's Nakanishi Junya was a test of nerve from the opening set. Nakanishi seized a 3-1 lead and later, after a perfect three-arrow fourth set, moved ahead 5-3.

Bommadevara faced elimination. He responded with a 29 in the fifth set while Nakanishi managed a 28, forcing a shoot-off under the stifling heat of the Plaza de Armas.

The Indian archer stepped to the line and landed a 10-X liner. Nakanishi dragged his arrow wide right, and the title was decided.

A hat trick completed

Bommadevara had reached the final by sweeping aside Türkiye's Berkim Tumer and France's Jean-Charles Valladont, both by 7-1 margins. The victory in Saltillo completed what World Archery called a "hat trick of major golds" in 2025 and 2026, following his Asian Championships crown and a maiden individual World Cup stage win in Antalya last June.

He joins Dola Banerjee, who won the women's title in Dubai in 2007, as India's only World Cup Final champions. Jayanta Talukdar had been the last Indian man to medal, taking bronze in Edinburgh in 2010.

"From the start of the match until the very end, I kept one thing in mind: I had to fight right up to the final arrow," Bommadevara said afterwards. "I did fight, and I am incredibly proud and happy about that."

The 25-year-old, who had left earlier World Cup Finals without a medal, stood on the podium as India's sole representative in Saltillo. His journey from a tearful breakthrough in Antalya to a calmer, decisive triumph in Mexico marks a quiet turning point.