Hyderabad (Telangana) [India], October 11 (ANI): Chero Archers and Prithviraaj Yodhas registered their third wins to move clear at the top of the standings in the second season of Archery Premier League (APL), while defending champions Rajputana Royals slumped to their third straight defeat here on Sunday. 

Inspired by Atanu Das' good form, Chero Archers have arguably been the most consistent team of the season so far, and they began the day by beating local franchise Kakatiya Knights 6-0. The Yodhas then made it a hat-trick of wins by defeating Chola Chiefs 6-2. In the best match of the day, Marathas clinched a 5-3 thriller against Royals. Chero and Yodhas are at six points each after four matches, while Chiefs and Royals are at the bottom of the standings with just one win so far, as per a press release. 

The world's first franchise-based archery league, APL is initiated by the Archery Association of India and comprises six teams and a total of 48 archers, with 36 Indians and 12 elite international stars. The league, taking place at People's Plaza in Hyderabad, will culminate on October 18 with the grand finale featuring the top four teams in the semifinals, followed by the title clash. 

After losing by the barest of margins a day earlier, Chero bounced back in some style. Atanu emerged as the best male recurve archer of the day with an average score of 9.67.  

The Knights made a significant change to their starting lineup with Austrian compound star Nico Wiener making way for Shivshankar Landkar and he was in good form along with Jyothi Surekha Vennam. But Chero have Das in terrific rhythm and have a strong compound squad to lead them with world No 1 Mathias Fullerton shooting ahead of Sahil Rajesh Jadhav. The Danish archer was the highest scorer of the match with 59 out of six arrows. 

In the first set, a low 6 by Casey Kaufhold with the final arrow didn't hurt Chero Archers as their first seven arrows were superb for 69 out of 70. In the second set, Atanu's incredible arrow into the middle of the target face for an X was the highlight as Chero Archers stayed ahead comfortably. The third set was an absolute thriller with both teams tied 38-38 after four arrows each. But the Knights felt the pressure as they needed to win this set to stay alive. Atanu hit another 10 to make it 67-67, and then Kaufhold stepped up to hit another to close out a high-quality set and ultimately secure a comfortable win. 

In the second match, 16-year-old recurve archer Gatha Khadake came up with some clutch arrows under pressure for Yodhas. Her 10 to close out the third set was crucial to give her side a 77-76 scoreline. The Chiefs continued to go with compound archers back-to-back at the start of sets but consistency eluded them on the day. 

In a thriller late in the day, Royals once again started well with compound archer Kushal Dalal, picked ahead of Ojas Deotale, setting the tone, with Tokyo Olympics champion Mete Gazoz anchoring them with a high-pressure 10. 

The match eventually panned into a keen battle between Gazoz and India's star recurve archer Dhiraj Bommadevara. In the second, Bommadevara was on song, and it helped the Marathas bounce back. Simranjeet Kaur also recovered from a slow start, and the Marathas got into their stride, with 'Mr Perfect' Mike Schloesser in good form again. 

The teams split a quality third set, and the match was finely poised at 3-3. The final set came down to Gazoz and Bommadevara with less than 10 seconds left for both teams. While the Indian shot what appeared to be a costly 8, Gazoz could manage only a 7 and could scarcely believe what unfolded as Marathas celebrated. 

On Monday, the action will get underway with Chero Archers taking on Mighty Marathas in a battle of two teams in good form. The second match will be between defending champions Rajputana Royals and Chola Chiefs, with both teams desperate to get off the bottom of the table. In the third match, Prithviraaj Yodhas will be up against the local franchise Kakatiya Knights. 

Scores: Day 4 (October 11)Match 1: Chero Archers 6-0 Kakatiya KnightsMatch 2: Prithviraaj Yodhas 6-2 Chola ChiefsMatch 3: Mighty Marathas 5-3 Rajputana Royals 

BEST ARCHERS OF THE DAY (Rs 1 lakh reward each)Recurve male: Atanu Das (Archers) Recurve female: Ankita Bhakat (Royals)Compound male: Kushal Dalal (Royals)Compound female: Ella Gibson (Royals). (ANI)