Commonwealth Games 2022: India's haul of fame in Birmingham

CWG medal rush is another step in the right direction after the high of Tokyo OlympicsBIRMINGHAM: After the Tokyo Olympics, where India won an unprecedented seven medals, expectations from the country's 2022 Commonwealth Games contingent were naturally high. Traditionally, India wins truckloads of medals at the CWG. Before Birmingham 2022, anticipation of medals was there, but not a deluge.

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A quick glance at the final medal count for Team India at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham will show that the number of medals won - 61 - are five less than the final figure in the Gold Coast four years ago in 2018 - 66.

The absence of shooting, a sport where India dominates at the CWG stage, meant the general perception was that the final medal tally will drop drastically. Star javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra being ruled out due to a groin injury, just two days before the Opening Ceremony, was a massive dampener. In India, the excitement for the Games had diminished somewhat. In 2018, India's tally of 66 medals had 16 from shooting, including seven gold. So many thought it'll be difficult for India to cross the 50-medal mark at Birmingham 2022. The Indian contingent to Birmingham had other thoughts though. The shooters, the wrestlers, the paddlers, the boxers, the lifters, the shuttlers, the judokas, the track and field athletes, and not to forget the Lawn Bowls men and women's team, who raised their game and brought glory to the country, as India finished 2022 CWG with a haul of 61 medals including 22 gold.

The juggernaut started rolling when lifter Sanket Sargar, who comes from Sangli, Maharashtra, clinched silver in the men's 55kg category. Sargar, in