Guwahati, Feb. 14: Bangladesh shooters are struggling to regain the glory of the mid-nineties when it excelled in the South Asian Federation Games, as the South Asian Games was known then.

"We had rubbed shoulders with the best in the business during the mid-nineties. Now, we do not have that many shooters as youngsters do not take up shooting, which is a costly sport. They like team games like cricket and football, which are more popular," Saiful Alam Choudhury, the coach of the Bangladesh shooting team at the 12th edition of the Games, told The Telegraph at the Kahilipara shooting range here this afternoon.

Bangladesh has so far won an individual gold, two team silvers and two bronze medals in the Games.

"The performance has been good mainly in the pistol events. We have not done too well in the rifle event," Choudhury, who had taken part in the Atlanta Olympics in 1996 and was a gold medallist in the 1995 SAF Games, said.

To be fair, Bangladesh does not have infrastructure like India.

"We do not have an electronic shooting target system in the 50-metre range in Bangladesh. The system is only available for the 10-metre range. Besides, there are not too many shooting ranges outside Dhaka. But our federation and government has, of late, been focusing on improving the state of shooting in our country," he said.

Asked if he was eyeing more medals here, "We are banking on Armin Asha in the 10-metre air pistol women's event tomorrow."

Anjan Kumer Singha, a Bangladeshi Manipuri who won a team silver medal, echoed Choudhury.

"The equipment and coaching standards in India are better, which is why you see Indian shooters dominating. In Bangladesh, the equipment that we have is a tad out-of-date. So, we have not been able to keep pace with the developments unlike India."

Bangladesh is fielding 28 shooters (12 women and 16 men) in the Games.

Pakistani shooter Lubina Amin, who won a bronze in the 25-metre pistol (team), also feels that the level of shooting in her country is below par as of now.

"The facilities are not as good as in India. On the awareness front too, not much has been done to promote the sport in Pakistan. We hardly have any international exposure. It is hard for women shooters to excel at this level but we are doing what we can," Lubina, who debuted at the Games, said while boarding the shuttle to her hotel.