The nation won four gold medals on the final day of competition as there was a hat-trick of victories in badminton...
Digital Desk: India finished their spectacular 2022 Commonwealth Games campaign in style on Monday (August 8). The nation won four gold medals on the final day of competition as there was a hat-trick of victories in badminton, with PV Sindhu, Lakshya Sen, and Satwik Rankireddy/Chirag Shetty winning the women's singles, men's singles, and men's doubles titles, respectively.
Moreover, Sharath Kamal put the icing on the cake by winning the gold medal in the men's singles table tennis competition. With this victory, he earned his fourth medal in the competition and his 12th overall, moving him into second place among Indian athletes in terms of the medal count.
India placed fourth in the rankings with a total of 61 medals. When compared to their medal total from 2018, India dropped one spot and had five fewer medals. However, a closer look at the data reveals that India actually did better. India brought home 66 medals from the Gold Coast Games, including 26 gold and 20 silver and bronze.
The truth is that the 2022 edition did not include shooting, India's most popular sport in CWG history. India won a total of 16 medals in the sport in 2018, including an astounding seven gold medals. If the shooting had been included in the Birmingham roaster, one can only speculate how high India could have placed in the medal standings.
Here is a comparison of India's performance in 2022 against 2018
Wrestling
India matched their 2018 medal count in wrestling by bringing home 12 medals. But this time, they had an additional gold medal. At CWG 2022, six Indian wrestlers took home gold, compared to five in 2018.
Weightlifting
After wrestling, it was weightlifting that brought India the most medals in 2020. India did one better in 2022 than it did in 2018 after securing a total of 10 medals, with three golds. In 2018, India won nine weightlifting medals, five of which were gold.
Table Tennis
With seven medals won in table tennis in 2022, India had a remarkable performance. However, this fell short of India's eight-medal haul from last year by one. The women's team competition was where India experienced the most noticeable disappointment because they were expecting to retain their gold medal from 2018.
Boxing
Boxing, like table tennis, was another sport where India fell off of its 2018 tally. Despite winning seven medals, including three golds, in 2022, India earned nine medals in 2018. India took home a total of three medals on both occasions.
Badminton
With six medals in the sport, India was able to match their total from 2018 in 2022. Even though the country lost the mixed team final, it still managed to win three top podium spots, earning more gold medals. In badminton, India won two gold medals in 2018.
Athletics
Despite the large Neeraj Chopra-shaped hole, India easily excelled in their 2018 tally in 2022. India earned eight medals in all from the athletics event in Birmingham, which is a big increase from the three they took home in 2018.
Lawn Bowls
Despite lawn bowls having been a component of the games since their establishment, India had never won a medal in the sport before 2022. But in 2022, after winning two medals, including a historic gold in women's fours, the nation's future in the sport was altered.
Squash
In squash, India won two medals in 2018 and repeated the feat in 2022. But on the Gold Coast, there were two silver medals, whereas, in Birmingham, both Indian medals were bronze.
Judo
India won three medals in the sport of judo in Birmingham, despite the sport not being a part of the CWG in 2018. Two silvers and a bronze were among them.
Cricket
The introduction of women's cricket in 2022 marked the first time in 24 years that cricket had been a part of the competition, and the Harmanpreet Kaur-led team was successful in earning a historic silver medal.
Hockey
To the surprise of many, the Indian men's and women's teams failed to win a medal in 2018, but they made up for it in 2022 by winning medals in both events. The men took home a silver medal, while the women won a bronze.
In powerlifting, India won one medal each in 2018 and 2020. However, this time there was gold to celebrate. There was one bronze medal for the country on the Gold Coast.
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