Come on India, win the big medals in Birmingham
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Sreejesh. PV Sindhu. and Mirabai Chanu
For the common man, any mention of the Commonwealth Games brings back memories of what happened in New Delhi in 2010. There is no doubting the Games were held in a lavish manner, where hosts India showcased “atithi devo bhava” philosophy (welcome guests) with a large heart.
New Delhi dished out amazing hospitality, though, for many reasons later, corruption cases grabbed headlines. The 2010 CWG legacy cannot be forgotten. After that, India went on to do well at the Asian Games in Guangzhou, a few months later, the same year.
On the eve of the Commonwealth Games starting in Birmingham on Thursday, it is time to pause and think. The buzz of life will go on. Yet for the breed of Indian sports lovers, at home and abroad, salivating over the medal prospects at the Games is justified.
It seems like yesterday India rocked at the Tokyo Olympics in July/August 2021. If, first, we did well in the Olympics, garnering seven medals, the Para athletes crowned themselves in glory as well.
Olympic champion Neeraj Chopra to miss Birmingham 2022
Sadly, one man who will be missing is Neeraj Chopra. The 24-year-old hero had to pull out of the CWG owing to a hamstring injury which he sustained last Saturday during his silver-medal winning effort in the World Championship in Eugene, Portland, US.
It would have been immature and irrational to force Neeraj into the CWG as any groin injury needs complete rest. Neeraj won gold at the last Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast, Australia, in 2018. The four-year period since then has been one of achieving medals, glory and success. Not just for Neeraj, himself, but the entire nation.
Well, sport does not teach you to cry over absence. Sport means positivity and India will hope to go full throttle in Birmingham over the next 12-odd days. To be sure, there can be no comparison between New Delhi and Birmingham. Having visited Birmingham last month, what I saw was the whole conduct of the Games is going to be very low key.
Yes, sports will be showcased. At the same time, there has been a conscious effort at capping the costs, as Britain, too, faces political uncertainty after Prime Minister Boris Johnson resigned and the stock markets took a nosedive. In fact, the entire economy in Britain is in trouble, what with the Pound Sterling also losing value in comparison to the US dollar.
A lot of expectations from a fairly young Indian contingent
At the Games, the value will not be for dollar or pound but sheer performance. In Neeraj’s absence there is a chance for many other Indian sports stars to grab the attention and headlines. It must be a rock and roll show wherein sporting fans can rejoice and celebrate.
The expectations from Birmingham are high and the 200-odd athletes must focus on just sport. We have already read about needless controversies over boxer Lovlina Borgohain complaining about her coach’s absence. More stories of doctors not getting accreditation and so on are also in the news. What athletes need to do is perform.
The elite stars these days have a sense of entitlement and expect too much. The pampering has come from all of us. Now is the time for them to deliver. With the Asian Games in Hangzhou postponed to 2023, each Indian athlete representing the country has to be on top now.
From athletics to boxing and hockey to women’s cricket, we have the talent base and enormous potential to excel. What is needed is concrete and concentrated efforts in the British Midlands, where the weather will be conducive for high performance. It will not be like Tokyo where the heat and humidity was crazy.
Sample this. PV Sindhu, Lakshya Sen, Sakshi Malik, Bajrang Punia, Mirabai Chanu, Lovlina Borgohain, Nikhat Zareen, Annu Rani, Avinash Sable, Manpreet Singh and Savita Punia, all of them have the arsenal to put on great shows in the various arenas in individual and team sports like hockey. We also have the Para athletes competing in good numbers. They are the ones who will be cheered lustily as well.
What is needed is focussing on the present and not worrying about what they do not have. The Indian government has spent large sums of money on training of athletes, camps, coaches and so on. So what if shooting is not there as a sport. It did give us 16 medals in Gold Coast. However, rising costs and related issues and the prerogative of the host city saw shooting being thrown out of the programme.
Today, India has enough athletes who can win medals. We won 66 medals last time. This time, one hopes more gold medals are won. That will make the big difference. From now till the Asian Games in 2023 and then the Paris Olympics in 2024, the calendar is packed. You have to peak in Birmingham. There can be no excuses.
Come on, India.
Also Read: Badminton at the 2022 Commonwealth Games: Who will reign supreme?
Also Read: Cricket at Commonwealth Games 2022: 5 players to watch out for
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S Kannan
(382 Articles Published)