Revision as of 06:13, 13 April 2018

The athletes who led India’s charge

April 4, 2018: The Times of India

ATHLETICS

NEERAJ CHOPRA (JAVELIN THROW)

In athletics, 20-year-old javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra would be India’s top gold medal prospect despite the presence of several track and field veterans in the contingent. Chopra, who caught the nation’s attention with a sensational gold in the U-20 world championships in 2016 with a junior world record effort, has it in him to claim the top spot in the CWG. Though his personal best is 86.48m, a throw similar to his season best of 85.94m — achieved in Patiala last month — should be enough to clinch top honours in Gold Coast. In Glasgow CWG, four years back, Julius Yego of Kenyta had claimed the javelin gold with 83.87m.

BOXING

VIKAS KRISHAN (MEN’S 75 KG)

The charismatic Vikas Krishan shot into limelight, winning gold at the 2010 Asian Games in Guangzhou. Ever since, it’s been a bit of a rollercoaster ride for the boxer from Haryana. He won bronze at the 2014 Incheon Asiad in the 75kg category. The 26-year-old is back in form, winning the best boxer award at the Strandja Memorial in Bulgaria recently. He claimed gold in the competition, overcoming World Championship bronze-medallist Troy Isley, and is fancied to lead India’s charge.

MANOJ KUMAR (MEN’S 69 KG)

At 31, Manoj is a vastly experienced campaigner. He will try to rekindle the highs of 2010 CWG in New Delhi where he triumphed with frenzied spectators in the boxing arena bringing down the house. In the 2014 Glasgow Games, Manoj was knocked out in the quarterfinals. The Arjuna awardee had to stay satisfied with a bronze medal at the recently concluded India Open International tournament in the capital.

LAISHRAM SARITA DEVI (WOMEN’S 60 KG)

Along with the illustrious MC Mary Kom, L Sarita Devi has been a torch-bearer for women’s boxing in the country. However, despite her numerous achievements, including gold at the 2006 World Championships and silver at the 2014 Glasgow Commonwealth Games, the weight of the 2014 Asiad controversy hangs heavy on her shoulders. She was extremely disappointed after the judges ruled that her opponent Park Ji-Na of Korea had beaten her in the semifinal. The Indian felt cheated and at the medal awarding ceremony, a tearful Devi refused to accept her bronze and was banned by the world body for a year.

BADMINTON

PV SINDHU

Olympic silver medallist PV Sindhu is the favourite to win the women’s singles gold. The 22-year-old, who had won bronze in 2014, will look to make amends. In Glasgow too, Sindhu was expected to win gold but was shocked by Canada’s Michelle Li in the semifinals. In the last four years since, Sindhu has achieved a lot, winning many titles and also becoming the world No. 2. Though she suffered a minor injury last week, Sindhu returned to court on Sunday and looked completely fit. With no big shuttler apart from her illustrious senior Saina Nehwal in the fray, Sindhu knows that she needs to beat the former world No.1 to finish on top.

SAINA NEHWAL

Saina Nehwal’s career started with the 2006 Commonwealth Games, when the then Indian coach Vimal Kumar preferred her ahead of Aparna Popat. Saina did not look back after that. Interestingly, her 2010 women’s singles gold at the New Delhi CWG catapulted her to international glory. She won close to 20 international titles after that. At 28, Saina is looking to extend her career with another superlative performance at the CWG. It’s clear that the only challenger to Saina is Sindhu. The lastminute injury scare to Sindhu has put more responsibility on Saina’s shoulders as coach Pullela Gopichand may prefer her for the team event which is scheduled to begin on April 5.

KIDAMBI SRIKANTH

World No. 2 Kidambi Srikanth was on a roll in 2017, winning four Super Series titles and was within striking distance of becoming No. 1. Srikanth, who won a bronze at the 2014 Games, needs to work hard to win gold now. Malaysian legend and former world No. 1 Lee Chong Wei and HS Prannoy are in Srikanth’s path to glory. Beating Chong Wei is not easy and Prannoy is always a tough nut to crack. Unless another shuttler produces a major upset, which appears highly unlikely, these three shuttlers are strong favourites to win gold in men’s singles

SQUASH

DIPIKA- JOSHANA

Four years ago in Glasgow, the duo of Dipika Pallikal Karthik and Joshana Chinappa created history by winning the country’s first-ever gold medal in squash. Four years on, it’s rather telling that the dream of another medal rests once again on these two tried-and-tested veterans of the game.

Seeded third among women’s doubles, Dipika and Joshana are placed in Pool C along with Wales, Pakistan and Malta. With the top two teams making it to the main round, Dipika and Joshana are expected to have it easy. The real challenge that awaits them is in the knockout stages where they will have to fight it out against top-ranked players from Australia, England and New Zealand. Although it won’t be a cakewalk for the two at Gold Coast, Dipika and Joshana offer the best chance for a medal in squash.

SHOOTING

JITU RAI (50M PISTOL AND 10M AIR PISTOL):

Only an empty pistol can keep Jitu Rai away from the podium finish as the army shooter will probably face the weakest field in the 50m pistol event ever since he began shooting. The only competition Jitu will face, in both, 50m and 10m air pistol events, would be from compatriot Om Mitharwal. With the young Mitharwal in fray, India can hope for a 1-2 finish on podium.

Considering Jitu’s bronze finish in the World Cup in Guadalajara last month, Jitu is expected win gold in both the pistol events. While he had finished 10th in 10m air pistol at Glasgow, Jitu will be defending his 50m pistol title.

APURVI CHANDELA (10M AIR RIFLE)

The heart-breaking 34th place finish at the Rio Games two years ago had taken a toll on Apurvi Chandela. The Jaipur shooter then looked like a shadow of her former self. But the shooter is back in medal contention with a silver finish in the Nationals in December last year. Although she didn’t win a medal in the Guadalajara World Cup, she made it to the final with a decent score of 626.8. In Gold Coast, Apurvi will be defending the 10m air rifle gold that she had won in the Glasgow. She will get a tough fight from young Indian Mehuli Ghosh.

MEHULI GHOSH (10M AIR RIFLE)

Mehuli Ghosh, 18, is not an unknown name anymore. The West Bengal shooter, who had won eight gold and three bronze medals at the Nationals, made her senior World Cup debut special by winning bronze in the women’s 10m air rifle event in Guadalajara last month. There are high chances of Mehuli winning her first Commonwealth Games medal. With a small field of only 18 shooters, Mehuli will be one of the favourites to win gold.

MANU BHAKER (10M AIR PISTOL)

Considering her current form, Manu Bhaker, 16, is safely India’s best bet to win gold in Gold Coast.

Other than sweeping the senior (above 21), junior (U-21) and youth (U-18) National titles in December last year, the Haryana girl has won four World Cup gold medals (2 senior, 2 junior), including a Junior world record on debut last month. Though Manu shoots in 10m air pistol and 25m pistol events, she will be competing only in the 10m event at Gold Coast. And like many other Indian shooters, her biggest challenge would also come from an Indian — Heena Sidhu in her case. This will be Manu’s first Commonwealth Games.

ANKUR MITTAL (DOUBLE TRAP)

The former World No. 1 double trapper will shoot in his second CWG. Mittal, who had finished fourth in Glasgow, will probably face the toughest field, compared to his Indian teammates. The Delhi-based shooter will probably shoot in the Olympicdiscarded event, double trap, for the last time as he plans to switch to trap. The Indian will be challenged by defending champion and Rio Olympics bronze medallist Steven Scott of England.

GYMNASTICS

ARUNA BUDDA REDDY

Aruna Budda Reddy will love to be back in Australia. Just over a month back, she created history by becoming the first Indian gymnast to clinch an individual medal at the Gymnastics World Cup in Melbourne. This week, the 22-year-old will be carrying hopes of medal in Gold Coast. A black belt holder, Aruna’s father Narayan Reddy was instrumental in shifting her to gymnastics at the age of eight. She won her first National medal in 2005. It has been a steady progress for the Hyderabad girl. After that she participated in World Championships in 2013, 2014 and 2017 in Antwerp, Nanning and Montreal respectively. However, she failed to progress beyond the qualifying rounds.

HOCKEY

MEN’S TEAM

When Sjoerd Marijne took over as the coach of the Indian men’s hockey team, one of his first mission statements was for the Commonwealth Games. It said — target gold. On April 7, when Manpreet Singh and his men take on Pakistan in their opener, it will be a definitive step in the direction. The fact that the 18 players in Gold Coast haven’t played together as a unit in any major event – with Vishnu Prasad in the midfield and Dilpreet Singh in the forward line being raw talent – could be a drawback. The conversion rate of the forwardline continues to be a cause of concern. That said, the two-time silver medalists have worked hard over the past year and most of them are at their peak in terms of form, fitness and confidence. The team should be weary of losing to lower-ranked teams.

WOMEN’S TEAM

Women’s chief coach Harendra Singh has struck a fine balance of experience and young talent. With an eye on the podium —which they last climbed as champions at the 2002 Manchester Games— the team management has stretched itself to make this team a competitive unit. While they still lack speed, they are not found wanting on skills or fitness. Their campaign will primarily depend on their ability to handle pressure, execution of plans and penalty corner conversions. The experience of Savita in the cage and skipper Rani in the frontline will form the crux of India’s campaign. It is also a good opportunity for some of the senior players to erase the scares of having finished last at the 2016 Rio Olympics.

WRESTLING

VINESH PHOGAT

It was heartbreaking for Vinesh Phogat in Rio Olympics, when her run ended in tears due to injury in the quarterfinal. She was one of the sure-shot medallists for the country, but injured her knee during her match against China’s Sun Yanan. She had to be stretchered off from the mat. That memory still haunts Vinesh and according to the champion wrestler only a gold at the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games would prove as a balm. She is the defending CWG champion, having won the gold in 2014, and stands a good chance of repeating that feat. Her recent form is good – she won silver in the 2017 and 2018 Asian Wrestling Championship. Vinesh will be participating in the 50kg freestyle category.

SAKSHI MALIK

After her bronze medal-winning feat in Rio, Sakshi has become a doyen of Indian wrestling. Post her Olympic medal, Sakshi was awarded the Rajiv Khel Ratna Award and the Padma Shri. She would love to convert her 2014 CWG silver medal into gold this time. Her Olympic bronze came in the 58kg weight category. Sakshi moved up to the 62kg weight class last year. This transition was well-planned. First, she moved to the 60kg weight class and won silver at the 2017 Asian Wrestling Championship in New Delhi. Then at the Commonwealth Wrestling Championship in Johannesburg she won gold in the 62 kg weight category. Recently, she won gold in the same weight class at the 2018 Asian Wrestling Championship in Kyrgyzstan.

BAJRANG PUNIA

Bajrang Punia is India’s best bet in men’s freestyle wrestling in Gold Coast. He will participate in the 65kg weight class. In the last two years, Bajrang has emerged from the shadows of his mentor Yogeshwar Dutt and has held his own. After Yogeshwar’s failure in Rio Olympics, Bajrang assumed the role of the lead wrestler in the 65kg weight category. As Yogeshwar took a sabbatical from the mat, Bajrang won the country medals at the World, Asian and Commonwealth level. He bagged silver in the 2017 World U-23 Wrestling Championships, gold at the 2017 Commonwealth Wrestling Championship, gold at 2017 Asian Wrestling Championships and recently a bronze at the 2018 Asian Wrestling Championships. Like Sakshi, Bajrang too won a silver (in 61kg weight class) in the 2014 CWG and is likely to go a step higher this time.

SUSHIL KUMAR

Double Olympic-medallist Sushil Kumar would aim for a golden hat-trick. Sushil claimed the top position in the previous two editions. Pehelwaan ji, as Sushil is called by his mates at the Chhatrasal Akhada, would be competing in the 74kg freestyle category. After missing the Rio Olympics on a controversial note, Sushil returned to the mat just last year. He won gold at the Nationals when three wrestlers forfeited their match. Then his followers allegedly assaulted fellow grappler Parveen Rana during the selection trials for CWG, earlier this year. The build-up has been far from ideal for the 34-year-old. But Sushil has experience on his side and CWG generally has a relatively weaker level of competition. The gold he won at the 2017 Commonwealth Wrestling Championship is a prime example of that. Therefore, another gold is very much in sight.

WEIGHTLIFTING

MIRABAI CHANU

She won a silver in the 2014 Commonwealth Games and four years down the line, the lifter from Manipur would be keen to improve her standing in Gold Coast. In between, the 23-year-old faced both lows as well as highs as she tried to establish herself as the top woman lifter of the country. She had a disappointing show in Rio when she failed to failed to register any weight against her name. But she bounced back in style by claiming the gold in the World Championship in USA last year, with a world record to boot.

SANJITA CHANU

Mirabai’s statemate Sanjita was the better of the two when the duo fought for the gold medal in the Glasgow Games. But there won’t be any contest between the two in Gold Coast this time as Sanjita has since changed her weight category from 48 kg to 53 kg, while Mirabai has remained in 48kg. The 24-year-old, who took to the sport after getting inspired by the legendary N Kunjurani Devi, made it to the Gold Coast CWG by winning Commonwealth Championships held last year at the same venue.

India's results,day-wise

5 April

April 6,2018: The Times of India

WEIGHTLIFTING Gold: Women (48kg): S Mirabai Chanu.

Silver: Men (56kg): P Gururaja.

BADMINTON: Mixed team event: India bt Sri Lanka 5-0; bt Pakistan 5-0.

BOXING: Round 1: Manoj Kumar (69kg) bt Osita Umeh (Nig), enters prequarters.

CYCLING: Men: 7th in Team sprint; Women: 6th in Team sprint.

HOCKEY: Women: India lost to Wales 2-3.

SWIMMING: Men: 50m butterfly: Veerdhawal Khade (finishes 15th after making the semifinals); Sajan Prakash failed to qualify for semifinals; 100m backstroke: Sri Hari Nataraj (finishes 13th after making semifinals).

SQUASH: Men: Singles (Round 1): Harinder Pal Sandhu bt Cameron Stafford (Cayman) 3-1; Vikram Malhotra bt Manda Chilambwe (Zam) 3-0; Sourav Ghosal lost to Chris Binnie (Jam) 2-3.

Women: Dipika Pallikal bt Charlotte Knaggs (TTO) 3-0; Joshna Chinnappa bt Lynette Vai (PNG) 3-0.

TABLE TENNIS: Men’s team event: India bt Northern Ireland 3-0; bt Trinidad and Tobago 3-0.

Women’s team event: India bt Sri Lanka 3-0; bt Wales 3-1.

8 April

8 April- India won 3 gold, 1 silver and 2 bronze medals
From: April 9,2018: The Times of India

See graphic:

8 April- India won 3 gold, 1 silver and 2 bronze medals

11 April

Achievements of Indian players in CWG 2018 on April 11, 2018
From: April 12, 2018: The Times of India

See graphic:

Achievements of Indian players in CWG 2018 on April 11, 2018