India won both the individual and team gold medals as Bangladesh finished with two silver. Pakistan won the team bronze.

Sharmin, who won one of two shooting gold medals for Bangladesh at the Islamabad Games in 2004, had to settle for second place despite a superb shoot-off performance.

She was four points behind Radhika and Dhilon, who shot 394 points each out of maximum 400 after the team event.

In the shoot-off for the individuals 18-year-old Sharmin outgunned Dhilon. But the BKSP student's impressive 103.4 points out of maximum 109 was not enough to beat Radhika, who finished with a total of 498.1 points to Sharmin's 493.4.

Sharmin shot 10.8 twice and only once fell below the 10.0 mark in ten efforts in the shoot-off. Radhika's shoot-off score was 104.1.

Suraiya finished sixth with 483.7 points after the shoot-off.

Sharmin, who also put on a good show in the finals after finishing the team event on the same score of 390 in Islamabad, told after the event that she was happy.

"I have been using a new weapon and new dress. I have been feeling uncomfortable. I am happy because it could have been worse. I did not shoot better than this during preparation," said Sharmin whose best-ever score was 394 in the Asian Shooting Championship last year.

Suraiya told that she had a fever before the competition but this was nothing new from the shooter who has always found some excuse at international competitions.

Veteran Sabrina Sultana, the third member of the Bangladesh team, contributed 378 points in the aggregate team total of 1154 points, 31 behind eventual winners India and seven points ahead of Pakistan, who won the team bronze.

Coach Asbab Ali Foyaz said that he did not expect a better performance than this from the female shooters.

"We have failed to improve our scores while the Indians have gone miles ahead. This is our level and we have to admit that," said Foyaz.

WINNING START FOR HOCKEY
Bangladesh edged Sri Lanka 1-0 in the opening match of the 10th South Asian Games hockey competition at Matale yesterday.

Forward Maksud Alam Habul separated the two sides in the 32nd minute at the Nandimithra Ekanayaka Hockey Stadium in the hill-station near Kandy.

Bangladesh, who won the bronze when hockey was played for the only occasion in the Games at Madras in 1995, dominated the first half but the hosts surged with a series of raids in the dying moments. However, goalkeeper Russel Khan Bappy and the defence led by captain Issa Mia thwarted the Lankan efforts to seal three points.

In today's match, Bangladesh take on title contenders Pakistan who suffered a 2-0 defeat to archrivals India later yesterday.

Defender Raghunath put India ahead from a penalty corner two minutes from halftime before centre-half Gurtaj Singh sealed the victory in the 64th minute.

WEIGHTLIFTING
Biddyut Kumar Roy won the fourth bronze medal for Bangladesh in weightlifting when he lifted 255kg in the 94kg category at the Colombo University gymnasium. He finished a distant third after Pakistan's Shuja Uddin (320kg) and Sri lankan DKR Jayathileke (270kg).

Azizur Rahman finished fourth in the day's first event, the 85kg category with a lift of 241kg.

CYCLING
The two Bangladeshi cyclists participating in the Games put on a dismal show in the roads of Colombo with Mominur Rahman finishing 16th (1hr03:54.90) and Aslam Bishwas (1hr06:55.78) 18th among 20 contestants in the 40km individual time trial.