All eyes will be on the long jump pit where M. Sreeshankar will make his much-awaited return from injury in the Indian Grand Prix-3 at the Kanteerva stadium on Monday.
It will be Sreeshankar’s first competitive meet after the National Games, and he is using the opportunity to test his fitness and form.
“Sreeshankar will be taking it a little easy in this meet. He has not set any specific target for himself. We just want to test his fitness as we started training only two months ago after the injury sidelined him for nearly three months. He is aiming to reach his peak form by June-July where he has some important meets lined up in his schedule,’’ said Sreeshankar’s coach and father S.Murali.
However, the country’s top long jumpers Jeswin Aldrin and Muhammed Anees Yahiya have given the meet a miss. Anees’ brother Muhammed Anas, who ran the 200m in Indian Grand Prix-2, will not be competing here. But the presence of Amlan Borgohain, in both 100m and 200m, and his showdown with Amiya Kumar Mallick and Maldives’ Hassan Saaid will headline the sprint events. In the absence of top quarter milers, V. Muhammed Ajmal, who won Indian Grand Prix-2, looks the favourite to win the 400m.
In the women’s section, Hima Das will continue her comeback process in the 200m. Though the field looks thin, Hima, who was disqualified for a foul start in the Grand Prix-2 in Thiruvananthapuram, will be keen to do well here.
In 400m, Jyothika Sri, who won Indian Grand Prix-2, will start as the favourite. V.K. Vismaya and Aishwarya Mishra will be Jyothika’s main rivals. Pranjali Dilip Patil and local girl Unnathi Bollanda will renew their rivalry in the 110m hurdles. Pranjali pipped Unnathi in the Grand Prix-2 in Thiruvananthapuram recently.
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