CWG 2022: Ravi Dahiya yearns for gold medal

Having bagged silver at the Tokyo Olympics last year, wrestler Ravi Dahiya won't settle for anything less than gold at CWGTo say Ravi Dahiya is shy will be an understatement. It is an onerous task to get words out of his mouth. At times, he stops midway through his sentences and then you've to prompt him. But on the mat he doesn't require any prompting, and seldom does he stop. What would serve as a better example than the 57kg Tokyo Olympics semifinal. His opponent, Nurislam Sanayev of Kazakhstan was leading 9-2, going into the final minute, and to wriggle out of a stranglehold by the Indian, he even bit Ravi's right bicep. But Ravi didn't relent, despite the fact that he was in pain. Finally, he won by fall and entered the final. There was hardly any change in his facial expressions after such a tough win.

Although he became the second Indian wrestler to win an Olympic silver after Sushil Kumar - Ravi lost the 57kg final to twice World Champion Zaur Uguev of Russia - the lasting image from the Tokyo Games for Indian wrestling was Ravi looking at his right bicep, while Sanayev was lying on the mat hiding his face in the palms of his hands after the semifinal loss. It has been almost a year since Ravi stood on the Tokyo podium. He has already gone on record that he wants to better the colour of his Olympic medal, but before that happens in Paris in 2024, Ravi fancies getting hold of the first gold in the set of three. The set of three here means Commonwealth Games gold, Asian Games gold and Olympic gold. The Asiad gold will have to wait for one more year, but in Birmingham on August 6, lies Ravi's chance to clinch the CWG gold.

India's history at the Commonwealth Games

"For me, winning the gold medal is the main