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Sharath Kamal’s medal harvest at the Commonwealth Games — his best performance at a multidisciplinary event — underlines his status as one of India’s greats in table tennis. Love for the game and swiftness in adapting to change have fuelled his longevity.

In this issue

03-09-202223 STORIES

Resurgence: Since the T20 World Cup in 2021, India has won 19 out of 23 completed matches. Hardik Pandya (centre left) has been central to the team’s success. Alongside his explosive batting, what makes him dangerous is his pace bowling.

Asia Cup — the litmus test for new India

Since its T20 World Cup debacle in the UAE last year, India’s template for the format has changed. The new gung-ho approach will be put to the test at

Popular game: Football as a warm-up activity has become a hit among many players in recent years. Playing football not only adds the fun element to warm-up but also builds team camaraderie.

Repetitive warm-up routines can be counterproductive

Warm-ups play a crucial role in preparing an athlete for high-level activity, but they can be counterproductive, too, if they became boring and repeti

Jasprit Bumrah hasn’t played a single international match since the second ODI against England on July 14.

World of cricket: Bumrah ruled out of Asia Cup

Jasprit Bumrah has a back injury and has been ruled out of Asia Cup; former umpire Rudi Koertzen passes away aged 73.

Run machine: Rohit Sharma bats during the T20 series against West Indies.

Statsman: Rohit Sharma climbs to the top

After his half-century in the first T20I against West Indies on July 29, Rohit Sharma has the most individual 50+ scores in T20 Internationals.

The legend: Sharath’s performance in the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham was his best in a multi-disciplinary event.

Sharath Kamal — scaling new heights at 40

Sharath Kamal’s medal harvest at the Commonwealth Games – his best performance at a multi-disciplinary event – underlines his status as one of India’s

A dream come true: Tejaswin Shankar with his bronze medal.

Tejaswin Shankar: ‘I love to do what the others don’t’

Tejaswin Shankar battled selection uncertainties to fulfil his dream of winning a medal at the Commonwealth Games, but the 23-year-old doesn’t wish to

All’s well that ends well: Members of the Indian women’s hockey team with their silver medals after winning the bronze-medal playoff match against New Zealand. India let in a goal with 18 seconds to go for the final whistle but Savita Punia saved the day for India during the shootout.

Commonwealth Games Hockey: Australia, the thorn in India’s flesh

The women’s team had a bumpy ride to the semifinals, while the men’s team had a smooth ride to the final. Both faltered against the Australians, whose

Winning alliance: Saurav Ghosal (right) and Dipika Pallikal Karthik won their second medal together in mixed doubles at the Commonwealth Games.

Commonwealth Games: Saurav Ghosal saves India the blushes in squash

The veteran Saurav Ghosal outclassed former World No. 1 James Wilstrop to ensure India gained its first singles medal in the Commonwealth Games. He ba

Key player: Team Skip Rupa Rani Tirkey ensured on multiple occasions that her bowls toppled the better-placed opponent bowls and cut down their advantage.

Lawn Bowls at CWG 2022 — The beckoning in Birmingham

While the Indian teams aren’t yet among the heavyweights in lawn bowls, their success in Birmingham shows that now they aren’t easily crumbling under

On expected lines: P. V. Sindhu clicks selfies with fans after clinching the women’s singles gold. The top seed ended her long wait for an elusive Commonwealth Games gold with a convincing win over Canadian Michelle Li.

Commonwealth Games: A rich haul for Indian shuttlers

On the final day of the Games, India won three gold medals to pip giant Malaysia, the sport’s most dominant side at the Commonwealth Games since the 1

Colourful show: Artists perform during the closing ceremony of the 44th Chess Olympiad 2022 in Chennai on August 9.

Chess Olympiad: A well-organised extravaganza

Despite the time constraint to put together an event of such a magnitude in around four months, the Tamil Nadu government raised the bar to such a hig

Scripting success: The Indian women’s team had its maiden podium finish, a bronze. Ukraine and Georgia won the gold and silver medals respectively.

Chess Olympiad, women’s section: Indian women make history, but miss gold

In the absence of Russia and China, the host began as the favourite though there was very little to choose among India 1, Ukraine and Georgia.

Proud moment: The top-three medal-winning teams, Uzbekistan, Armenia and India 2 with the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M. K. Stalin, FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich, FIDE Deputy President and former world chess champion Viswanathan Anand, AICF President Sanjay Kapoor and AICF Secretary Bharat Singh Chauhan.

Chess Olympiad, open section: Young players steal the limelight

If India 2, with a starting rank of 11, took the bronze, gold and silver went to a young Uzbekistan and an experienced Armenia, seeded 14 and 12 respe

Weaving a magic: India’s Achanta Sharath Kamal and Akula Sreeja in action during the mixed doubles final. Teaming up with Sharath, the 24-year-old Sreeja, who plays with long-pimpled rubber for backhand, raced to the mixed gold.

Commonwealth Games: A reassuring performance by Indian paddlers

The manner in which the contingent continued its supremacy from Gold Coast four years earlier proved that Indian table tennis is on the right track.

On a roll: Emma McKeon won six gold, one silver and one bronze to become the only medallist with eight medals at the Birmingham Games.

Commonwealth Games: Australia rules the waves in Birmingham

Australia won a whopping 65 medals in swimming at the Birmingham Games, Emma McKeon winning eight. Indian swimmers, though, did not make much of an im

Another feather in the cap: Sushila Likmabam with her silver medal in the women’s 48kg category. It was her second medal in the Commonwealth Games, after her silver medal in Glasgow eight years ago.

Commonwealth Games: Indian Judokas fall short against the best

India finished its campaign in the judo competitions in Birmingham with two silver and a bronze medal, but the standard of competition wasn’t too high

Falling like ninepins: West Indies’ Jason Holder walks off offering little resistance in the fifth T20I against India in Lauderhill, Florida. The 88-run defeat handed India a 4-1 series win.

Sunil Gavaskar’s advice to West Indies: ‘No retainer, increase players’ match fee’

The cricket world needs the West Indies team for the special flair they bring to the game. They are crowd pleasers and crowd pullers and that’s why it

The Commonwealth carnival is finally over. Birmingham’s very own Prince of Darkness, Ozzy Osbourne, concluded the proceedings, with a 30,000-strong crowd cheering on at the Alexander Stadium.

Commonwealth Games

Commonwealth Games Diary: A sleep-deprived soul with a Midlands accent

Diary – with an average sleep score of 34 in 13 nights, 2,05,218 steps and a hurting Achilles – is going to miss the Commonwealth Games.

Tejaswin Shankar, Avinash Sable and Murali Sreeshankar

Commonwealth Games

Sable’s dramatic silver, the most precious medal at the Commonwealth Games

In Birmingham, India’s athletes managed their best medal haul in the Commonwealth Games outside India. High jump, long jump and triple jump yielded me

A hard blow: Lovlina Borgohain receives a punch during her round-of-16 bout against New Zealand’s Ariane Nicholson. The Tokyo Olympics medallist was expected to win a medal in Birmingham but she bowed out in the quarterfinals of the women’s light middleweight category, losing to Wales’ Rosie Eccles.

Commonwealth Games 2022: For India, boxing a mixed bag

India’s performance in Birmingham was a bit underwhelming as some of the reputed pugilists failed to live up to expectations. Nonetheless, new talents

Ravi Dahiya, Vinesh Phogat and Sakshi Malik

Indian wrestlers at CWG 2022: Past failures forgotten, fresh legacies fashioned

India’s performance in Birmingham was a bit underwhelming as some of the reputed pugilists failed to live up to expectations. Nonetheless, new talents

India’s Vinesh Phogat celebrates after winning against Sri Lanka’s Chamodya Keshani Maduravalage Don during the Women’s 53kg Nordic System wrestling at the Coventry Arena on day nine of the 2022 Commonwealth Games.

Vinesh Phogat state of mind: Wrestler rebuilds with CWG gold medal hat-trick amid highs, lows and scars

Birmingham 2022 was Vinesh’s first major competition since another Olympic disaster – this time in Tokyo. If the Gold Coast Games were about recoverin

A pleasant surprise: Vikas Thakur celebrates his silver medal in the 96kg class at the Commonwealth Games. He enjoyed a bit of luck as two podium contenders — England’s Cyrille Tchatchet and Cyprus’ Antonis Martasdis, with 150-plus efforts in snatch — blacked out in clean and jerk.

Commonwealth Games: India’s weightlifting performance on expected lines

Weightlifters bagged 10 medals to uphold India’s reputation as the top team in the discipline at the Commonwealth Games. The overall performance was o

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