Commonwealth Video games 2022 top-five close to misses for Indian athletes

India registered one its most profitable Commonwealth Video games campaigns on the 2022 version in Birmingham with 22 gold, 16 silver and 23 bronze for a complete medal tally of 61.

Nevertheless, as is commonly the character of the game, some athletes missed out on including to that wealthy medal haul regardless of valiant performances, akin to boxer Ashish Kumar bearing the brunt of a questionable verdict.

Alternatively, there have been others who clinched a medal however fell simply in need of the gold, long-jumper M. Sreeshankar being a living proof.

Praveen Chithravel (males’s triple bounce remaining)  

Just a few centimetres denied India a podium sweep within the triple bounce remaining. Whereas gold-medallist Eldhose Paul and silver-medallist Abdulla Aboobacker secured the nation’s first 1-2 end in athletics on the Commonwealth Video games (CWG), Praveen Chithravel was simply three centimetres shy of bronze medallist Jah Nhai Perinchief’s 16.92m. Chithravel registered his better of 16.89m in his third try and adopted it up with 16.68m, 16.85m and 16.28m as Perinchief’s mark continued to elude the Tamil Nadu triple jumper.  

Ajay Singh (males’s 81kg weightlifting remaining)  

Gold medal prospect Ajay Singh misplaced out on a bronze by a whisker within the males’s 81kg weightlifting occasion and completed fourth with a mixed carry of 319kg, only one in need of bronze-medallist Nicholas Vachon (320kg) of Canada. Ajay was positioned joint-second on the finish of the snatch spherical with a better of 143kg, 5 in need of his Nationwide Document of 148kg, after clearing 137kg and 140kg in his first two makes an attempt. The 25-year-old began the clear and jerk on a robust footing with profitable lifts of 172kg and 176kg however did not clear 180kg – falling effectively in need of his Nationwide Document of 190kg – in his remaining try.  

Ashish Kumar (males’s boxing mild heavyweight quarterfinal) 

Ashish Kumar was denied a medal after shedding a controversial males’s mild heavyweight boxing quarterfinal 1-4 by way of cut up resolution in opposition to house favorite Aaron Bowen. A lot to Ashish’s disbelief, the Englishman was unanimously awarded the ultimate spherical after each pugilists had bagged one spherical every by a 3-2 margin. The 2019 Asian Championships silver medallist, down on his haunches, smacked the ground of the boxing ring in frustration following a closely-contested third spherical. Ashish was coming off a thumping 5-0 victory by way of unanimous resolution in his Spherical of 16 bout and a win within the quarterfinal would have assured the 28-year-old of a bronze.  

Sreeja Akula (girls’s desk tennis singles bronze medal match)  

In an exciting and pulsating contest for the ladies’s singles desk tennis bronze medal, Sreeja Akula misplaced to Australia’s Yangzi Liu 3-4 (11-3, 6-11, 2-11, 11-7, 13-15, 11-9, 7-11) after staging a collection of comebacks. The Indian pocketed the primary recreation 11-3 with ease earlier than Liu bounced again to degree the scores with a 11-6 win within the second. The Australian constructed on the momentum to take a 2-1 lead after three video games however the 24-year-old got here again to take the fourth recreation 11-7 to attract degree once more at 2-2. With Liu forward 3-2, Sreeja made a surprising comeback, successful the sixth recreation 11-9 after being 1-7 down at one level. Nevertheless, Sreeja couldn’t recuperate from a big deficit of 1-6 within the decider as Liu clinched the ultimate recreation 11-7 and with it the bronze.  

Manpreet Kaur (girls’s para powerlifting light-weight remaining) 

Manpreet Kaur completed fourth within the girls’s light-weight para powerlifting occasion with a finest carry of 88kg and a complete of 89.6 factors. The 35-year-old cleared 87kg and 88kg in her first two makes an attempt earlier than failing to hoist 90kg in her remaining try and was overwhelmed to the rostrum by bronze-medallist Hellen Wawira Kariuki of Kenya, who scored 98.5 factors with a better of 97kg. Manpreet’s compatriot Sakina Khatun completed fifth with 87.5 factors and a better of 90kg as Sudhir’s gold within the males’s heavyweight class was the one para powerlifting medal India gained on the 2022 Commonwealth Video games.  

Among the many medals, gold simply out of attain

M. Sreeshankar (males’s lengthy bounce remaining) 

Silver-medallist M. Sreeshankar missed a historic gold within the males’s lengthy bounce remaining by the barest of margins and left a number of questions in his wake. The 23-year-old missed out successful India’s first-ever lengthy bounce gold medal on the Commonwealth Video games after registering a bounce of 8.08m in his fifth try, which left him degree with eventual winner Laquan Nairn. With each athletes tied on finest bounce, Nairn clinched the gold owing to a greater second-best bounce. Nevertheless, the Indian appeared to have jumped within the vary of 8.20m in his fourth try, which was declared a foul primarily based on guidelines launched in November 2021. Whereas to the bare eye it appeared that Sreeshankar’s foot was behind the take-off line whereas, based on the brand new guidelines, his boot had breached the ‘verticle airplane’ of the road by a centimetre. “It was a millimetre,” Sreeshankar screamed to his coach in disbelief. 

Avinash Sable (males’s 3000m steeplechase remaining) 

Avinash Sable bettered his Nationwide Document for the ninth time, shocked two-time World champion and 2016 Rio Olympics gold medallist Conseslus Kipruto and ended Kenya’s 24-year-long podium sweep within the occasion en path to his silver medal however fell 5 microseconds in need of the gold within the 3000m steeplechase remaining. In fourth place, behind three Kenyans early within the race, Sable pulled away earlier than giving eventual gold medallist Abraham Kibiwot a short scare within the remaining lap to complete in 8:11.20s. Regardless of having India’s, arguably, most hard-fought and treasured medal on the 2022 Commonwealth Video games, Sable wasn’t too happy. “I’ve gained the silver medal, however I remorse that it was a matter of some centimetres. I didn’t try this effectively whereas getting over the past two hurdles. If that had labored, it will have been the very best factor ever,” he mentioned. 

India girls’s hockey workforce (semifinal) 

In its bid to guarantee itself of a Commonwealth Video games silver medal after 16 years, the Indian girls’s hockey workforce held pre-tournament favorite Australia to a 1-1 attract regulation time. Captain Savita then denied the Australians a aim of their first penalty shootout try just for the hit to be restored due to a miscommunication between the referee and match officers relating to the clock. The Indian workforce’s coach Janneke Schopman and gamers expressed their dismay however the try was retaken and transformed by Australia on this event. India did not convert its probabilities and finally misplaced 0-3 within the shootout. “Powerful to take, particularly (after what occurred) within the first stroke of the shootout.” an emotional Savita mentioned after the match. “I don’t suppose even the officers understood what occurred… it’s not an excuse however that didn’t assist the workforce,” Schopman added.  

India girls’s cricket workforce (remaining) 

With 50 runs to win, six overs left, eight wickets remaining, captain Harmanpreet Kaur and Jemimah Rodrigues in the midst of a 90-run partnership, the Indian girls’s cricket workforce would have believed it had finally exorcised the ghosts of a defeat within the remaining of a multi-team event. What adopted was a procession to and from the dugout as India misplaced eight wickets in for 40 runs to finally concede a nine-run loss within the summit conflict in opposition to Australia. Eleven runs wanted off the final over with Yastika Bhatia on strike impressed a glimmer of hope however the medical Australians held their nerve and bowled India out inside the primary three deliveries, confining it to its third defeat within the remaining of a big-ticket event since 2017. India was coming off a surprising, come-from-behind four-run win in opposition to host England within the semifinal however faltered on the final hurdle once more in its quest for redemption and settled for silver.  

Sanket Sargar (males’s 55kg weightlifting remaining)  

Whereas Sanket Sargar’s silver within the males’s 55kg weightlifting occasion was India’s first medal on the 2022 Commonwealth Video games, the 21-year-old fell agonisingly in need of clinching a gold to open his nation’s account. Sargar, who lifted a mixed 248kg, was separated by gold-medallist Malaysia’s Mohamad Aniq Bin Kasdan by only one kilogram. The Indian was main after the snatch with a 113kg-lift that equalled his Nationwide Document and was 6kg away from second-placed Aniq. Within the clear and jerk, he efficiently cleared 135kg in his first try however failed 139kg within the following two, having damage his elbow on the second. Aniq made up for the deficit within the snatch by lifting 142kg in his remaining try and pipped Sargar to the gold medal.