The 22nd edition of the Commonwealth Games begins in Birmingham on July 28, stretching over 10 days with 72 Commonwealth nations taking part in the Games.
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The 22nd edition of the Commonwealth Games begins in Birmingham on July 28, stretching over 10 days with 72 Commonwealth nations taking part in the Games. 5,054 athletes will be seen in 280 events in 20 sports. India’s contingent includes112 men and 105 women competing who will be competing in 16 sports.
India received a huge blow earlier this week after Olympic gold medallist Neeraj Chopra was forced to pull out of the CWG due to injury. This comes after another historic moment for the javelin specialist, who won Silver at the World Athletics Championships. However, India is coming off a highly successful last Commonwealth Games securing 66 medals in Gold Coast, Australia. The medals were in full flow in table tennis, wrestling and badminton with new names emerging on the global stage for India. Here’s a look at 5 athletes who are expected to bring home more silverware at this edition:
Murali Sreeshankar (Athletics)
Murali Sreeshankar became the first male long from India to qualify for the finals of World Championships. He holds the national record including a jump of 8.36m at the National Federation Cup in April earning him the second-best long jump recorded this year. The 23-year-old is rising incredibly and is expected to bring home the Gold this time around.
PV Sindhu (Badminton)
Ace shuttler Sindhu is the first and only woman from India to have won two Olympic medals. Sindhu also won the Singapore Open and Swiss Open titles to her name this year, but will be aiming to make things right after her final loss in 2018 to Saina Nehwal. Sindhu has had a meteoric rise since then and is a favorite to be among the medals in Birmingham.
Nikhat Zareen (Boxing)
Zareen enters the CWG 2022 as the World champion winning Gold at the World Boxing Championships in Turkey. She is one of five women from the country to win the Championship putting her in top spot to win Gold in this edition. After being dubbed by many to be the next Mary Kom, the youngster has gone from strength to strength in recent times.
Mirabai Chanu (Weightlifting)
Mirabai Chanu became an overnight sensation by winning a silver medal in weightlifting at the Tokyo Olympics 2020. She is a two-time CWG games medalist having won silver in Glasgow and gold in Gold Coast. Chanu will compete in the Women’s 55 kg category on July 30 and will look to make it a third consecutive medal showing at the Games this year.
Indian Women’s Cricket Team
Cricket is making its debut in the CWG 2022 in T20I format. Captained by Harmanpreet Kaur, the Indian team will face stiff competition from England and Australia. The likes of Smriti Mandhana, Shafali Verma and Jemimah Rodrigues will be spearheading India’s bid for glory in the games. However, after an improved showing in recent years, the girls will surely be favorite to come home with an impressive outing in England.
