Glasgow: If you take away 2010 New Delhi, the benchmark for India at the Commonwealth Games has been 2002 Manchester, when they crossed the 50-medal mark for the first time by ending up with 69 medals, 30 of them gold.
Before the Indians left for Glasgow, the expectations were pegged at somewhere between the Manchester tally and 2006 Melbourne, where they touched exactly 50. So, 64 should be taken as a reasonably happy figure, considering the turmoil the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) has gone through over the last four years.
Unfortunately, nobody seems to take seriously the 101 medals and the second position India achieved at home in 2010. The refrain is: “What’s so big doing it in your backyard.” That’s uncharitable. See how Scotland performed at home to finish fourth behind neighbours England, behind Australia and Canada and a rung above India.
India could have easily added a few more medals if only archery and tennis had not been dropped from the Games. Archery and tennis accounted for 12 medals in New Delhi. In shooting, 18 events have been dropped, including pairs events, which meant 14 medals India won in 2010 were gone straightaway.
In Greco-Roman wrestling, India had won eight medals. The shooters were not the same confident lot they were in Delhi, though they still logged 17 medals, 13 less than they achieved at home.
Yet Sushil Kumar and Yogeshwar Dutt made sure that Indian wrestling continues to be on the upswing and, in all, five gold, six silver and two bronze medals were surely impressive. Vinesh Phogat and Babita Kumari brought in a pair of golds from the women’s section.
The last day for India at Glasgow was a replication of what happened in 2010. If Saina Nehwal won the women’s singles badminton gold, her Hyderabad-mate Parupalli Kashyap pulled off the men’s singles final. It was a great achievement for him as he won a singles gold for India 32 years after the great Syed Modi won it in 1982 in Brisbane.
Like Kashyap, discus thrower Vikas Gowda was another great athlete brought into focus when he won an athletics gold after 56 years, when Milkha Singh won the 440 yards at Cardiff in 1958.
There was also a flush of medals from weightlifting. The lifters won 12 — three gold, four silver and five bronze.
If India lost the hockey final to Australia four years ago by a confidence-shattering 8-0, this time they reduced the margin by half but still could not score a goal.
Abhinav Bindra has shown he is not for nothing among the world’s best by winning his 10-metre air rifle gold, his first at the quadrennial event.
The boxers performed remarkably well to make four finals, but none could land gold and that was a big disappointment, particularly the loss of Vijender Singh, who came back to international competitions working hard.
