Abhinav Bindra has etched his name into his India's sporting history after he became his country's first individual Olympic gold medallist.

Bindra won gold in the 10 metre air rifle event and in doing so won India's first gold medal of any kind for 28 years after he shot a score of 700.5.

India had previously won eight gold medals in the Olympic hockey tournament, but never in an individual sport, and Bindra said he hoped his victory would have a profound affect on sport in the country.

"I sincerely hope this win will change the face of Olympic sport in India," Bindra said. "In our country, Olympic sports are not really a priority, I hope now they will get more attention."

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Bindra's victory came just a day after India's cricketing superstars crashed to a series defeat in Sri Lanka. Kapil Dev, the former Test all-rounder, admitted Bindra's feat was arguably India's finest sporting achievement, even eclipsing the 1983 cricket World Cup victory.

"This is much, much bigger than the World Cup," Dev said. "I hope it will do as much for Olympic sports as ours in 1983 did for cricket.

"It is not easy for an Indian to win an Olympic medal, let alone a gold, because there is no sporting culture in our country. I hope this will make sports a way of life in India."