Sanjita Chanu bags Gold in weightlifting, maiden bronze for Deepak
There was no stopping the Indian weightlifting juggernaut with Sanjita Chanu and Deepak lather adding a gold and bronze to the team's tally, while the shuttlers and boxers continued to be unbeaten on the second day of the 21st Commonwealth Games here on Friday.
If Mirabai Chanu was the toast of the nation on Thursday, it was the turn of Sanjita Chanu to hog the limelight on Friday, claiming a gold and a Games' snatch record in the 53kg category.
The diminutive Manipuri lifted a total of 192kg (84kg+108kg) to claim the gold and broke down in tears on the podium.
Ensuring that the men also had a share in the day's exploits, lather became the youngest Indian weightlifter to claim a CWG medal with his bronze in the 69kg category.
While lather had luck on his side as his nearest rival fouled the all-important final clean and jerk lift, Chanu had her fortitude to thank as she claimed her second successive CWG gold despite nursing a nagging back problem here.
The contrast couldn't have been more striking between the two Indians. While Chanu broke down in tears when she was presented her medal, lather was grinning ear to ear and in mild disbelief at his good fortune.
"I was just sitting inside and hoping the Samoan would fail his attempt. I know it's bad to wish ill for someone but I couldn't help it," lather said breaking into a laughter after the medal ceremony.
The only disappointment in the weightlifting arena was Saraswati Rout in the women's 58kg category. She failed to complete a single valid lift in the snatch section and was disqualified from clean and jerk as a result.
‘Sad couldn't break records’
Ever heard of a successive gold-medallist speak of being sad after medal ceremonyIJ That was Indian weightlifter Sanjita Chanu, who was disappointed about not breaking a Commonwealth Games record despite the fact that she was not even 100 per cent fit.
The 24-year-old Manipuri claimed the 53kg category gold on Friday after breaking the Games record in snatch. But the ambitious athlete in her was a shade "sad" that she could not break the record in clean and jerk.
"Had I not dropped my last lift, I would have created a Games record. I really wanted to do it. I missed it and I am a bit sad about that. But I guess it's ok, I don't know," said the reigning Commonwealth Championships gold-medallist.
Other disciplines
There were several other good results to celebrate for India though, a prominent one being the women's hockey team bringing its campaign back on track with a 4-1 thrashing of Malaysia.
The triumph helped the side recover from the shocking 2-3 loss to a lower-ranked Wales in the tournament-opener.
The Indians continued to be the big bullies of the badminton court, dismantling Scotland on Friday to top their mixed team event group and advance to the quarterfinals.
In the boxing ring, CWG debutants Amit Panghal (49kg) and Naman Tanwar (91kg) were hardly pushed as they recorded unanimous victories to enter the last-eight stage.
On the squash court, Joshna Chinnappa entered the quarterfinals with a 3-0 win over Australia's Tamika Saxby.
Former Asian gold-medallist Deborah Herold made the final heat of the women's sprint event in cycling but lost to Australian Kaarle McCulloch to bow out of medal contention.
Putting up a dismal show, world cup medallist gymnast Aruna Reddy failed to qualify for the final round but a 'lucky' Pranati Nayak made the cut in vault event of the women's artistic gymnastics in the Commonwealth Games here on Friday.
India outplayed Samoa 26-4 in the men's Pairs Sectional Play Round 4, while women's Fours Sectional Play team beat England 21-9.
Indian woman para-swimmer Kiran Tak finished seventh in the women's S9 100m backstroke final of the 21st Commonwealth Games here on Friday.