Highlights, Commonwealth Games 2018 Gold Coast Day 4: India women's team wins table tennis gold; Men beat Wales 4-3 in hockey

A great day for India comes to an end. 

The Day 4 of the Commonwealth Games saw Manu Bhaker, Heena Sidhu, Vikas Thakur, Punam Yadav and not to forget the women’s table tennis team win gold medals. Apart from that, the Indian badminton team too sealed a place in the final of the mixed team event beating Singapore 3-1. Meanwhile, Mary Kom assured India of a medal with an impressive win. 

Take a look at the medal tally: 

The Indian men’s basketball team go down fighting 81-96 against Scotland. 

The Scots always had the upper hand since the time they had a 37-35. Indian basketball teams, men and women, haven’t had the best of times as they have lost all their games till now. 

It’s a pity how a disastrous third quarter just lost the plot. India gave a tough competition to one of the strongest teams in the lot.

What a day for the Indian women! 

What a day for 🇮🇳 women!

5:30am: Manu Bhaker #CWG record
6:36am: 🇮🇳 women's hockey beat 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿󠁧
7:20am: Punam Yadav 🥇
7:50am: Mary Kom assures 🇮🇳of medal
8:10am: Bhaker 🥇, Heena Sidhu 🥈
9:57am: Saina guides 🇮🇳 to final
5:25pm: TT women's team 🥇 pic.twitter.com/xzbR23SCfg

— Firstpost Sports (@FirstpostSports) April 8, 2018

Table tennis: India beat Singapore 3-1

And Manika Batra seals the deal for India! She beats Zhou in straight games 11-7, 11-4, 11-7 in the fourth match of the tie. 

The Indian women’s team has beaten the top seeds and runaway favourites Singapore. What a win over 2002, 2006, 2010 and 2014 winners. Clinical show! 

First ever GOLD medal for Indian’s women’s team!

Table tennis: Singles

Batra played some extraordinary shots to take her opponent out. An 11-4 win for the Indian paddler there. She is one game away from winning gold for her country. 

The Singaporean Zhou looks out of touch. 

The third game has begun! 

Singles matc****h

Batra takes a 7-0 lead over Zhou in the second game. Her attacking shots are proving to be a handful for the Singaporean paddler.

Table tennis: Singles

​Batra 1-0 Zhou

That’s more like it! 

The Indian paddler avoided a defensive approach to shut out Zhou in the opening game. She takes the first game 11-8.

Batra had already registered a thumping win over the World No 4 in her first match. Can she win gold for India? 

Table tennis: India 2-1 Singapore

Manika Batra and Mouma Das wrap up the fourth game 11-7 to win the doubles tie against Yihan Zhou and Mengyu Yu. 

That’s an incredible win over heavyweights Singapore. 

Next up will be women’s singles, where Batra takes on Zhou. If she wins this, India take gold! 

Table tennis: Doubles

India drop third game: 8-11

Zhou and Yu manage to get the better of the Indian duo after losing the first two matches. India lose third game 8-11. India still lead the match 2-1 though. Fourth game coming up!

Finally, it’s over 

India clinch three points. Score – 4-3. Player of the match should be SV Sunil. He assists and scores, what else needs to be done. First win for India at the Gold Coast. This was close. Could have been an upset at 3-3. But India kept their head, was patient and got the goals. If they had lost their head in the last 3 minutes, it could easily have been a draw. But 3 points are important. India is alive for a semi-final spot. They have England and Malaysia ahead.

GOAL! Sunil. He does it. Pushes the PC. Picks the rebound and scores. It’s 4-3. India lead. Wales has taken off the GK.

Table tennis: Doubles

India’s Mouma Das & Madhurika Patkar bag the second game 11-6 and are a win in the third game away from taking a 2-1 lead in the final. What an aggressive duo! The Singaporeans are finding it difficult to return the shots

GOOALL!

India lead again! It’s 4-3 now. 

SV Sunil slots it in from second rebound.

GOAL!

Wales get their 3rd. It’s 3-3. India in deep trouble. They need a win. Three points are crucial.

Table tennis: Doubles 

Das and Madhurika take the opening game 11-6 

So much energy and pace in their game. The girls have combined well to outsmart Zhou & Yu, who were too defensive in their approach. 
 
The second game gets underway! 

GOAL!

Harmanpreet Singh gets the flick right. It’s 3-2. Can they hold it now?

Das and Madhurika are moving beautifully at the moment. The duo has taken a five-point lead at 9-5 and look set to clinch the first game.

India 1-1 Singapore

Next up is women’s doubles!

India’s Mouma Das and Madhurika Patkar take on Yihan Zhou & Mengyu Yu in the third match of the tie.

Is India leaving it too late?

They are building well but that sharpness and the uncanny ability to find a forward is not there. Yet they have to go with patience. If they give space, Wales can break through. India had a PC but wasted. It’s still 2-2. Surprising no attacks from the left.

Table tennis: Singapore equalise 1-1

India’s Madhurika Patkar could not match up to Mengyu Yu’s pace in all the three games. The Singaporean’s attack was just outstanding. With that 13-11, 11-2, 11-6 win, Singapore have levelled the scores in this women’s team final tie 
 

WALES SCORE!

That’s why goals are needed to make the issue safe. Wales has found an equaliser of their 3rd PC. The flick hitting Rohidas and going high into the net. At 2-2, India will hunt for a match-winner. It’s been a game that has a lot of rigour. India halted by an efficient Wales side. At 2-2, anything can happen now.

Table tennis: Yu 2-0 Patkar

A flurry of errors flowing from the Indian’s paddle as an aggressive Yu makes the most of it. She dominates the second game 11-2 and now she just needs one more game to seal this match. 

The crucial third game gets underway. India need to reply now! 

India needs a goal here. They need to breathe easy. Mandeep almost got it off an assist from Sunil but the deflection went past the post. Wales still playing well, moving up and defending. Wales are also ensuring that Indian players fall back and defend. Very tight formations. Will take a special goal now from India to increase their lead.

Table tennis: Yu 1-0 Patkar

A neck-and-neck first game but Patkar couldn’t convert her attacking forehand shots into game points. Yu saved two match points to claim a 13-11 win over Patkar. 

Wales holding out. But India leads 2-1. Two consecutive PC’s defended by Wales. Both teams playing tough, trying to forge and create moves. Wales has a solid defensive wall. They are not defending inside the circle but coming out and tackling the Indian forwards.

Table tennis: India vs Singapore

Madhurika Patkar in action against Mengyu Yu in the second game of women’s team final. 

Oh well, Seema’s campaign ends with a combined total of 189 kg. She misses out on a medal at Gold Coast. 

She was well below her best in her Clean and Jerk attempts. Three lifters have already overtaken her and there are still two more lifters to come

Oh well, Seema’s campaign ends with a combined total of 189 kg. She misses out on a medal at Gold Coast. 

She was well below her best in her Clean and Jerk attempts. Three lifters have already overtaken her and there are still two more lifters to come

Table tennis: India 1-0 Singapore

MANIKA WINS!

Manika Batra beats Tianwei Feng 11-8, 8-11, 7-11, 11-9, 11-7 to give India 1-0 lead in women’s team final against Singapore.

She stuns the World No 4 in the women’s singles match. 

SV Sunil, the difference 

That’s the end of the 2nd Q. India leads 2-1. It’s been a gritty match. Wales, stubborn as hell not allowing India any space outside their striking circle. They played man to man and were careful in not giving away easy balls to India. Finally, it’s SV Sunil who gave both the assists, the first to Dilpreet and the 2nd created the PC. India, playing structured and working their feet off. It’s tough going. But India have it under control.

Weightlifting: Women

Almost there! 

Seema fails in her final 108 kg lift. She doesn’t look happy with her effort. Well, well, well. She now faces a nervous wait to know her fate in women’s 75 kg category

Weightlifting: Women

Seema makes another successful lift, this time of 105 kg to stay in contention for a podium finish in women’s 75 kg category. 

Can she lift 108kg in her next attempt?

INDIA TAKE LEAD, AGAIN!

GOAL! India get their 2nd PC. Rupinder Pal Singh flicks straight to GK. Manpreet smashes in which the GK saves and then Mandeep picks it up from below the pads and swipes it inside. India leads 2-1. Crucial lead here going towards the end of Q2.

Table tennis: Batra 2-2 Feng 

That’s some comeback by the Indian paddler. Batra takes the fourth game to enforce a decider! 

Yet again, Feng’s errors cost her the fourth game. 

India going all out but unable to breach the Welsh defence. Technical skills of Wales really good. They don’t miss interceptions and move up fast when they have the ball in the midfield. At this moment, Wales has a better possession. They are using short passes. India unable to break through.

Time for women’s weightlifting

Seema goes for her first attempt at the Clean & Jerk and she lifts it comfortably. She leads the table for now.

Wales gets the equaliser. It’s 1-1; perfect PC conversion. It was Wales 2nd PC and a low flick went past Sreejesh. Wales won’t crumble. They are opening up their play and making some pacy runs into the Indian striking circle.

Table tennis: Feng 2-1 Batra

​Feng’s resolute defence helps her take the advantage in this women’s singles match. 

Batra gave points cheaply towards the end. 

WALES EQUALISE!

Wales pull one back thanks to a penalty-corner conversion by Gareth Furlong.

INDIA TAKE LEAD!

GOAL! Dilpreet Singh gets his 2nd goal of the tournament. Picking up a pass from Sunil, he bangs it in.

India would be disappointed after the end of the 1st Q. It’s still goalless. Wales quite stubborn in their defence and closing down the play in the midfield. India need to increase pace and break down the Welsh on the flanks if going through the middle is tough. Sunil, Dilpreet and Akashdeep can break it down

Table tennis:

​Feng fights back to make it 1-1

The Singaporean didn’t allow Batra to get into the rhythm in the second game. She looks in great touch. Batra needs to mix her shots the way she did in the first stanza. 

After the initial attacks, both teams have slowed the pace. India and Wales slightly wary of opening up and going into attack. India a bit careful but building up to creating a move. Wales extremely careful. They are trying to close the gaps down.

Feng has brought so much variation in her game and with that, she has levelled the scores at 8-8!

Majority of the early attacks by India. They gained an early PC but the Harmanpreet flick was wide. India gaining control of the midfield and one saw Manpreet enter the Wales striking circle. India keeping possession of the ball and trying to forge a combination upfront. India need to get early goals and put pressure on the Wales defence

Indian men’s hockey team takes on Wales!

After their shock 2-2 draw with Pakistan, India taking on Wales. Must win match for India to bring back the campaign on track and give morale a much needed boost. India has played Wales six times, won five and drawn one. They are yet to lose to Wales.

India vs Singapore

Batra is using her attack to halt the Singaporean. She takes a healthy four-point lead at 7-3. 

Can she continue her imperious form?

India vs Singapore:

That’s a really strong start from Batra. 

Feng’s forehand errors have gifted her opponent a few points at the end of the first game. The Indian claims the opening game 11-8

Table tennis: India vs Singapore

India’s Manika Batra is against Tianwei Feng of Singapore in the first match of the tie. 

It’s a good start for the Indian as she mixes her shots to unsettle her opponent. And 9-7 to Batra! 

Boxing: 69kg Women

India’s Lovlina loses to Sandy Ryan of England in the quarter-final of the boxing women’s 69kg category. A unanimous decision goes in Sandy’s favour as she registers a narrow 3-2 win. 

Basketball: Women

End of the road for India at Gold Coast. That’s their third consecutive defeat. India played New Zealand in the third match and lost 90-55 to the group leaders. A heavy defeat for the women’s team. Tough luck! 

Weightlifting: 75 kg Women

Seema successfully finishes Snatch at 84 kg in her third attempt with relative ease. Look at that! 

Oh dear! Seema fails with her second attempt at 84 kg.

Alright. She’ll be up for her third attempt shortly

Weightlifting**: 75kg Women**

Seema succeeds in her first 80kg snatch. Indian weightlifters have been brilliant so far. Hoping to see another medal for India

Boxing: 69kg

India’s Lovlina Borgohain enters the ring for quarter-final 3 match against England Sandy Ryan

Cycling:

Deborah Herold registers a time of 11.801 seconds but fails to qualify for the second round after finishing fourth in her heat. She will have to go through the first round repechages.

Here’s everything you need to know about weightlifter Vikas Thakur who won bronze today

https://www.firstpost.com

ICYMI: India’s Vikas Thakur won bronze in weightlifting to give India’s 11th medal at Gold Coast

That's the 1⃣1⃣th medal for 🇮🇳 at #GC2018

Vikas Thakur's great effort earns him the bronze medal

What a moment for the 24-year-old weightlifter! #GC2018Weightlifting
LIVE ➡️ https://t.co/3k3rfi8bLw pic.twitter.com/7TQ2Iergdi

— Firstpost Sports (@FirstpostSports) April 8, 2018

Basketball: Women

India have begun their match against Pool B toppers New Zealand. It’s a must-win match for the Indians to have any hopes of qualifying for the next round. They haven’t won any games so far in the group stages 

Making the most of the occasion**!** 

So this just happened....@Jamell_A and @gljones4 just got engaged on the court at the Commonwealth Games! 👏👏#TeamAndCountry @GC2018 pic.twitter.com/oBuTQUQ0tb

— Team England (@TeamEngland) April 8, 2018

Rakesh Patra, who went to Court against the selection of gymnasts announced by the Indian Olympic Association and had the International Gymnastics Federation intervening in his favour, was unable to come up with his best in the men’s rings final today. He chose a routine that was worth a high 5.900 points but his execution did not convince the judges to award him more than 7.033 points for a total of 12.933, far removed from the 14.000-plus score that was needed to be in the medal hunt.

Tajinderpal Singh Toor needed three throws to confirm his berth in the men’s hot put final with a put of 19.10m. The competitors needed to get to 19m to secure automatic entry and the 23-year-old from Punjab, had throws of 18.49m and 18.43m – a far cry from the 20.24m that he managed in the Federation Cup last month in Patiala. It must be remembered that he could have qualified as one of the lucky losers to complete the set of 12 shot putters in the final but he can go in to tomorrow evening’s final with more confidence. For the record, New Zealand’s Tomas Walsh set a new Games record, marking 22.45m with his only put today.

Meanwhile, Muhammad Anas has topped his 400m heat with a timing of 45.96 seconds. Brilliant run by him and it takes him through to the semifinals

Weightlifting: 

Vikas Thakur claims the bronze medal in the men’s 94kg class with a personal best total of 351kg from 159kg in snatch (his personal best) and 192kg in clean and jerk. However, the intense competition between Papua New Guinea’s defending champion Steven Kari and Canadian Boady Robert Santavy was in a league of its own. Santavy, a third generation weightlifter, laid down the gauntlet in snatch by lifting a Games Record of 168kg to take a comfortable lead. Kari responded in the clean and jerk with a lift of 216 – a Commonwealth and Games record – to steal the thunder. Had he not been competing himself, it is a possibility that Vikas Thakur, the 24-year-old from Punjab, would have sat back to cherish the manner in which Kari waited for Santavy to finish his three lifts and then got the Commonwealth record to take a 1kg lead.

Weightlifting: 

Vikas Thakur wins bronze in men’s 94kg category after lifting a total of 351kg (159+192)

Defending champion Steven Kari of Papua New Guinea’s breaks CWG record in clean and jerk, lifts 370kg to pip Canada’s Broady Santavy (369kg) to win gold

It’s BRONZE for India’s Vikas Thakur in the men’s 94 kg!

Shooting 
Saniya Sheikh missed a date with the women’s skeet medal at the Commonwealth Games, finishing fourth after a roller-coaster ride in the final. Having qualified with the second-best score of 71, the 25-year-old from Meerut, missed three birds in a row to skirt close to being the second to be eliminated after Australian Aisilin Jones but England’s Emily Hibbs missed her the last of her 30 shots and went out. Saniya Sheikh appeared to have regained her poise and shot 11 birds in a row. She had another series of eight successive shots to raise visions of making the medals bracket but missed her last two shots to finish with 24 out of 30. Those two misses could not have come at a worse time but she appeared a bit distracted just before she took her final series of four shots.

Weightlifting:

​PNG’s Steven Kari lifts 202 kg in his first attempt and he is assured of a silver medal. India’s Vikas Thakur drops down to the third position now, and he will win the bronze here for sure.

Shooting:

Saniya finishes fourth with 32 shots on target. Two consecutive misses and the Indian faces elimination

The skeet final is now down to the last three. Cyprus dominating this with Andreou and Eleftheriou

Vikas Thakur comes out for his first attempt in Clean and Jerk, lifts 192 kg.

After successfully lifting 192 kg in the first clean and jerk attempt, Vikas Thakur fails to lift 200kg in the second attempt

Shooting:

Saniya survives elimination yet again!

8 out of 8 for the Indian shooter as England’s Emily Hibbs has been eliminated after 30 shots

After a good start, Saniya misses three shots as she slips to the fifth spot. Local lass Jones has been eliminated. 

Pranati Nayak finished out of medals contention In the women’s vault final with a below-par showing. She had an average score of 11.983 after the judges awarded her scores of 12.400 and 11.566 for her two vaults. The 23-year-old from Bengal attempted vaults of 4.800 and 4.400 degree of difficulty but did not impress the judges with her execution and was given scores of 7.700 and 7.166 respectively.

Shooting: 

India’s Saniya Sheikh has 12 shots on target out 14 so far in the women’s skeet final. That’s a good start! 

Meanwhile, India’s Pranati Nayak is out of medal contention after she gets .1000 penalty on her first vault. The 22-year-old finishes with a total of 11.983

India’s Saniya Sheikh is in action in the women’s skeet final. 

Hoping for another medal from shooting!

Vikas Thakur lifts personal best but faces challenge from Siaosi Leuo

Vikas Thakur, 24-year-old from Ludhiana, lifted a personal best of 159 kgs in snatch in the 94kg class category but was left facing a 9kg deficit by the leader, Canada’s Boardy Santavy, 2, who got a Games Record with a lift of 168 kgs on his third visit to the platform. The Canadian was sixth in the World Championships in Anaheim, United States of America, last year when the Indian finished 12th.  Vikas Thakur, who had won silver in the 85kg class in the last Commonwealth Games in 2014, will have to look out for Samoa’s Siaosi Leuo in the clean and jerk since the gap between them is just 3 kgs.

Boady Santavy take a bow!

The 20-year-old from Canada has absolutely smashed the competition at the Carrara Sports Arena 1. Santavy breaks the Games record with a mammoth lift of 168 kgs and you can see how pumped up he is. He is 9 kgs ahead of his nearest rival Vikas and is clearly the favourite to win gold

High praise for Manu Bhaker from Abhinav Bindra! 

Congratulations to #ManuBhaker for her superb show ! Sincerest compliments to coach @jaspalrana2806 for managing this young athlete superbly to get the best possible outcome.

— Abhinav A. Bindra OLY (@Abhinav_Bindra) April 8, 2018

Vikas Thakur second after snatch!

Steve Kari’s second attempt at 158 kgs fails and Vikas smashes his third attempt of 159 kgs to take the lead! Only for 20-year-old Santavy to snatch the lead after lifting 160 kgs in his very first attempt!

Vikas Thakur’s second attempt of 156 kgs successful

With Steven Kari nailing his first attempt of 154 kgs, Vikas decides to increase the weight to 156 kgs in his second attempt and he absolutely destroys it! Kari’s second attempt of 158 kgs is a failure and Vikas has the upper hand.

Vikas Thakur successful on his first attempt

The Glasgow silver medallist easily lifts 152 kgs on his first attempt to lay down his challenge. 

Saniya Sheikh into women’s skeet shooting final, Maheshwari Chauhan fails to make the cut

Saniya Sheikh, the 25-year-old from Meerut, qualified for the women’s skeet shooting final, scoring 71 and winning a playoff to make the grade as the second shooter behind Cypriot Panagiota Andreou who shot a Games record of 74 in qualifying. Saniya, who is a third generation shooter, started with a perfect 25 and followed that up with two rounds of 23 each. The other Indian in the fray, Maheshwari Chauhan, the 21-year-old from Jalore in Rajasthan, started well with a round of 24 but miss three birds in each of her next two rounds to finish eighth and not making it to the six-woman final that will be shot at 11.15 am.

Weightlifter Vikas Thakur in action in men’s 94kg class

Vikas will be looking to add to India’s five golds and one silver in weightlifting when he takes to the platform in the men’s 94kg class. In Vikas’ path to the podium stand Papua New Guinea’s 2014 champion, Steven Kari, Canda’s 20-year-old lifter Boady Santavy who finished sixth in the World Championships in 2017 and Samoa’s Siaosi Leuo.

India are through to mixed team event final!

Saina Nehwal beats Jia Min Yeo 21-8, 21-15 to propel India to the final of the mixed team event! Victories from Ashwini Ponnappa-Satwiksairaj Rankireddy, Kidambi Srikanth and Saina Nehwal help India beat Singapore 3-1 in the semi-final! They now await the winner of the second semi-final between England and Malaysia.

Vikas Krishan wins against home-crowd favourite Campbell Somerville

Vikas Krishan seemed to be in trouble in his fight against Campbell Somerville. The Australian had given the home crowd something to cheer about and it was a really open contest.

He’s won the contest 5-0 on points.

Ravi Kumar bags bronze to improve on Glasgow Games performance 

Ravi Kumar, 28-year-old Junior Warrant Officer of the Indian Air Force, survived a single shot shoot off with Australian Alex Hoberg to get into medal bracket but a 9.3 on the 21st shot meant that he had to settle for the men’s 10m air rifle bronze medal, leaving Australia’s Dane Sampson to beat Bangladesh’s Abdullah Hel Baku for gold with a Games record. It was an improvement from the fourth-place finish that the Meerut shooter managed in Glasgow Commonwealth Games four year ago. Deepak Kumar, who broke the Games record in qualifying with a score of 627.2, was eliminated in sixth place.

Vikas Krishan in action in men’s 75kg round of 16 bout

Vikas is up against Australia’s 21-year-old Campbell Somerville in his round of 16 bout.

India a game away from reaching the final of the mixed team event!

India are 2-1 up in the semi-final against Singapore with Saina Nehwal in action. The doubles pair of Yong Kai Terry Hee and Danny Bawa Chrisanta beat the pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty 17-21, 21-19, 21-12 to get Singapore back in the tie. However, Saina has won her first game against Jia Min Yeo 21-8 and she leads 11-6 in the second game. India are only 10 points away from a place in the final!

Dane Sampson wins gold!

Sampson has to endure a few nervy final moments. The Aussie’s last shot is a 9.3 and  Abdullah Hel Baki needs to shoot 10.1 or more to win gold. However, the Bangladeshi can only shoot a 9.7 and Australia have their 23rd gold medallist.

Ravi Kumar wins bronze in the men’s 10m air rifle event!

Ravi Kumar shoots a disappointing 9.3 and 10.2 to finish 0.5 points behind Bangladesh’s Abdullah Hel Baki in third place! He wins India’s 10th medal at the Commonwealth Games!

Ravi Kumar survives a shoot-off to assure himself of a medal!

This is a thrilling final! After 20 shots Ravi finds himself in a shoot-off with Alex Hoberg. Hoberg shoots a 10.4 and Ravi finds himself in the final three with a 10.3!

Ravi Kumar second after 18 shots

Ravi Kumar shoots 10.2 and 10.1 for a total score of 184.1 as Wales’ Michael Bamsey is eliminated. Ravi trails Dane Sampson by .03.

Deepak Kumar eliminated! Ravi Kumar in lead!

A costly 9.8 shot sees Deepak eliminated after 16 shots and he finishes in sixth place. Meanwhile, Ravi shoots 9.9 and 10.5 for a score of 163.8 and he leads.

An incredible comeback from Ravi and Deepak!

Phenomenal shooting from the two Kumars! Ravi climbs to joint second with shots of 10.9 and 10.8 after 14 shots! Deepak shoots 10.6 and 10.3 to climb to joint fourth!

Ravi and Deepak Kumar bottom of standings

Deepak Kumar narrowly avoided elimination after 12 shots as he shoots 121.3. Singapore’s Mohammad Irwan Abdul Rahman is the one to leave the competition. Ravi is in sixth with a score of 121.7.

Ravi Kumar bottom of the standings, Deepak 5th

Ravi Kumar is struggling and has fallen to the bottom of the standings after 10 shots with a score of 100.5. Deepak is fifth with a score of 101.3.

Deepak and Ravi start slowly 

After the first five shots, Ravi and Deepak Kumar are 6th and 7th with scores of 49.6 and 49.2 respectively. They need to shoot better to climb up the table and have a shot at the medals.

Deepak Kumar and Ravi Kumar in action in men’s 10m air rifle final

India’s medal tally could rise with Deepak Kumar and Ravi Kumar in action in the men’s 10m air final. Deepak had shot a Games record in qualification with a score of 627.2.

Yes, they have!

🤫shhhhh... they have just started 🇮🇳🎯🥇🥈🥉#gc2018Shooting #gc2018 @OfficialNRAI @ioaindia

— Joydeep Karmakar OLY (@Joydeep709) April 8, 2018

India are through to the finals of the women’s table-tennis team finals

India have beaten England in the semi-finals of the women’s table-tennis team event to assure India of a medal! Manika Batra, Madhurika Patkar and the doubles pair of Madhurika Patkar and Mouma Das won their matches to help India beat England 3-0. India will now take on Singapore in the final today at 6.30 pm.

One event, two medals

16-year-old Manu Bhaker clinches gold, Heena Sidhu gets silver. 

Manu Bhaker becomes India’s youngest Commonwealth Games medallist

Sixteen-year-old Manu Bhaker became the youngest Commonwealth Games medallist from India a couple of days after fellow-Haryanvi, weightlifter Deepak Lather claimed that distinction. What’s more, she did it with a gold-winning show in the 10m air pistol event, dominating both qualifying, where she got a Games record score of 388 and rustling up 240.9 in the final for another Games record. She had 14 tens in the final of 24 shots, unruffled by the pressure of shooting in a fairly noisy final range at the Belmont Shooting Centre in Gold Coast. She afforded herself a gentle smile once the scores were announced. 

Heena Sidhu proved that she had nerves of steel by surviving the guillotine many times in the eight-woman final. She found eight 10s in her last 14 shots to catapult herself to the silver medal position ahead of Australian Elena Galiabovitch. But the day was well and truly about the fairytale rise of the teenager trained by Indian shooting legend Jaspal Rana. In just around a year since she started shooting at the international level, she has caught the fancy of the whole nation.

Meanwhile, India’s female paddlers lead England 2-0
 
Madhurika Patkar battles past England’s Tin-Tin Ho to win her singles match 11-7, 13-11, 12-10, 11-8 and give India a 2-0 lead.

Incredible day for India as Manu Bhaker wins gold while Heena Sidhu claims silver!
 
An amazing start to the shooting events for India as Manu Bhaker and Heena Sidhu complete a 1-2 in the women’s 10m air pistol event. Manu breaks the Games record with a shot of 240.9 while Heena battled elimination early in the final and shot brilliantly to claim silver with a total of 234.0.

Manu Bhaker and Heena Sidhu battle for gold!

It is India vs India in the fight for gold as Manu Bhaker and Heena Sidhu face off for gold medal in the women’s 10m air pistol event!

MC Mary Kom assures India of a medal!

India have been assured of a medal in boxing as the experienced Mary Kom shows her class in her bout against Scotland’s 18-year-old Megan Gordon. The Manipuri wins by a unanimous decision.

Heena stages an incredible comeback as Manu stays on course for gold

Heena Sidhu shows her class as she rises to third from fifth after shooting 9.7 and 10.3 as Wales’ Coral Kennerley is eliminated.

Manu leads after 16 shots while Heena narrowly avoids elimination

After 16 shots, Manu leads with 157.1 while Heena narrowly avoided elimination as her 10.0 and 10.4 helps her beat the drop!

Manu leads after 14 shots while Heena battles for survival

After 14 shots in the women’s 10m air pistol event, Manu Bhaker is first with 131.0 points while compatriot Heena Sidhu is sixth with 124.6 points.

Manu Bhaker leads after 12 shots, Heena Sidhu sixth

After 12 shots in the women’s 10m air pistol event, Manu Bhaker is first with 121.0 while compatriot Heena Sidhu is sixth with 115.3 points.

Kidambi Srikanth wins first game

Srikanth takes the first game against Singapore’s Kean Yew Loh 21-17. The Singaporean is giving the World No 2 a tough fight.

Mary Kom in action in women’s 45-48kg quarter-final

Five-time world champion MC Mary Kom takes to the ring in her first bout of the Commonwealth Games. She’s up against Scotland’s Megan Gordon in her quarter-final bout.

Deepak Kumar shoots qualifying record in 10m air rifle

Deepak Kumar shot a qualifying record in the Commonwealth Games 10m air rifle with a score of 627.2, leading compatriot and Air Force officer Ravi Kumar (626.8) into the final. They were in top form, aware that they were favoured to do better than the rest of the field. In keeping their focus and getting impressive scores. The final will be at 9 am.

Manu Bhaker leads after 5 shots in final, Heena Sidhu 7th

Manu Bhaker, after breaking the Games qualification record, continues her good run. After five shits, she leads with a score of 50.9. However, Heena Sidhu, who finished 2nd in the qualification, is seventh.

India on course to exact sweet revenge against Singapore

#DidYouKnow: India 🇮🇳won🥈in the 2010 edition and missed out a podium finish in the last edition, loosing narrowly to Singapore. #IndiaontheRise #ShareTheDream #CWG2018Badminton

— BAI Media (@BAI_Media) April 8, 2018

Punam Yadav betters personal best in gold medal-winning performance

Punam Yadav won the 69kg class gold medal – India’s fifth from the sport so far – but not surviving tense moments. To her immense credit, she lifted personal bests in snatch (100 kg), clean and jerk (122 kg) for her best total of 222 kg. There was a great awareness among the 22-year-old Varanasi and her coaches that she would need to improve on her previous bests to claim gold here. The Railways lifter, daughter of a farmer, tied with Fiji’s Apolonia Vaivai in snatch and had to beat back a challenge from England’s Sarah Davies in the clean and jerk before she could sink on her knees in disbelief after her English rival went close to lifting 128 kgs on her final lift. Only a minute earlier, she had lifted 122 kgs on her second attempt after dropping the barbell behind her back the first time around. She had won bronze in the 63kg class in Glasgow.

Ashwini-Satwaiksairaj give India the lead

Ashwini Ponnappa and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy win India’s first match in the badminton mixed team semi-finals. The Indian duo beat Singapore’s Yong Kai Terry Hee and Jia Ying Crystal Wong 22-20, 21-18 in a hard-fought match. 

Kidambi Srikanth takes to the court to face Kean Yew Loh in the singles match.

The congratulations start rolling in!

Another 🥇Gold in 🏋️‍♂️ 🇮🇳 Punam Yadav #gc2018 #GC2018Weightlifting

— Joydeep Karmakar OLY (@Joydeep709) April 8, 2018

Punam Yadav wins India’s fifth gold!

Punam Yadav wins India’s fifth gold at the Commonwealth Games in the women’s 69kg event! Punam recovered after missing her second clean and jerk attempt but nailed 122 kgs in her third attempt to lift a combined weight of 222 kgs (100 kgs+122 kgs)

Punam Yadav misses her second attempt

Punam Yadav fails to lift 122 kgs in her second attempt and with Sarah Davies lifting the same weight successfully, the pressure is on Punam to nail her third lift.

Punam Yadav lifts 118 kgs to inch closer to gold

Punam is two lifts away from winning India’s fifth gold a the Commonwealth Games!

Manika Batra gives India the lead

Manika Batra comes back from a game down to beat England’s Kelly Sibley in the first match of the women’s team semi-final. Batra beats Sibley 9-11, 11-7, 11-5, 11-7.

India stun England

India’s 2-1 win over England gives them six points after three matches. They have come back after that shock 3-2 loss to Wales and have shocked England, the Olympic Champions. Skills and game awareness ensured that they kept England away. Good defensive work in the 4th Q. Quick passing also did the trick as India didn’t hold on too much. Turn-overs were less. Overall, a very good game and a super comeback to stun England.

Ashwini-Satwisairaj win tight first game

Yong Kai Terry Hee and Jia Ying Crystal Wong take the fight to the Indian pair in the first game, courtesy of some uncharacteristic errors from the Indians. They, however, manage to hold on to claim the first game 22-20.

India take on Singapore in the mixed team semi-finals

India, who are yet to lose a match in this event, take on Singapore in the semi-final. The mixed doubles pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Ashwini Ponnappa take on Yong Kai Terry Hee and Jia Ying Crystal Wong in the first match of the semi-final.

FT: India 2-1 England

England had led 1-0 after two quarters. India, who were not playing good, raised their levels after the break. Harendra Singh would have said something special for the women to come out and take the fight to England. They didn’t relent. Held the ball well and made sure the passes worked. Suddenly, England were on the defensive. Vandana and Rani Rampal then created some lovely moves as Navneet Kaur and Gurjit Kaur got the goals for India to stun the Olympic Champions England.

Deepak Kumar and Ravi Kumar pull away from rest of the field

Its an epic battle between Ravi Kumar & Deepak Kumar for the CWG 10m Air Rifle Men Qualification Record now at the Belmont Shooting Range. Exchanging 1st place every minute. #gc2018Shooting #gc2018.At the Gun Range Sania Sheikh looks strong

— Joydeep Karmakar OLY (@Joydeep709) April 8, 2018

FT: India 2-1 England

Huge victory for India. They have beaten England 2-1. Super comeback after being 0-1 down in the 1st Q. After having lost to Wales, this would in all probability push them towards a semi-final spot. India got their game going in the 3rd and 4th Quarter.

FT! India beat England 2-1!

India come back from a goal down to beat reigning Olympic champions England 2-1 in a crucial match for the Rani Rampal-led side who had Navneet Kaur and Gurjit Kaur on the scoresheet.

Racewalker Khushbir Kaur finishes 4th, Soumya Baby disqualified

India’s 20km race walker Khushbir Kaur finished fourth on a hot morning in Gold Coast after her compatriot Soumya Baby was disqualified before she could reach the 8km mark. Khushbir Kaur’s time of 1:39:21 was a little over three minutes behind the bronze medal-winning Bethan Davis (Wales). Khushbir Kaur was fourth at the halfway stage but dropped pace and slopped to fifth. It was only the disqualification of second-placed Australian Claire Tallent after 16km that saw the Indian regain the fourth place. The Indian walkers, both men and women were thus unable to secure a podium finish in the Commonwealth Games.

India take on England in the semi-final of women’s team table tennis event

The Indian women’s table tennis team take on England for a place in the final of the team final. Manika Batra faces Kelly Sibley in the first singles match.

India 2-1 England

England has pulled off their GK. India defending. They just saved a PC. Just two minutes left. India lead 2-1.

Deepak Kumar and Ravi Kumar start strongly in men’s 10m air rifle

Good start by Deepak Kumar in 10m Air Rifle Men #gc2018Shooting, leading the qualification and Ravi Kumar in 2nd.. #SHARETHEDREAM #gc2018

— Joydeep Karmakar OLY (@Joydeep709) April 8, 2018

India 2-1 England

Just around six minutes left. India needs to keep a tight defence. And when they have the ball, hold and rotate the ball till they find space. India shouldn’t give away easy balls. Rani Rampal has another chance but no forward there to deflect it.

India 2-1 England

England now searching for the equaliser. Savita pulling off a save. They are holding possession, building up their attacks. India need to do some good defensive work. But at the same time, try and create counters to break the offensive work of the English women.

Punam Yadav lifts personal best in snatch

Punam Yadav lifted a personal best of 100 kgs in snatch to share the lead with reigning Commonwealth Champion Apolonia Vaivai of Fiji in the women’s 69kg class weightlifting competition. The 22-year-old from Varanasi had lifted 98 kgs in the IWF World Championships last year when she finished ninth. By level pegging with the Fijian in snatch, Punam Yadav gave herself the best chance to making a run for gold. It will be a fascinating contest with the Fijian.

India 2-1 England

GOAL! India lead against the Olympic Champions 2-1. Rani Rampal was stick-checked and the resultant stroke is converted by Gurjit Kaur. England storm back and see a shot hit the post. It’s all happening in Q4. Can India hold on and keep England back?

GOAL! Gurjit Kaur scores! India 2-1 England

Rani Rampal is impeded while taking a shot and the umpire awards India a penalty stroke. Gurjit steps up and slots the ball in the bottom corner below the diving Madeleine Hinch.

India 1-1 England

India showing the skills they are capable of. It’s the last quarter. Scores are 1-1. And India are playing the Olympic Champions. They shouldn’t let off the pressure now

India 1-1 England

India attacking now. They are making those passes count. Fewer turn-overs from India. England on the defensive. It’s full press from India. Full points or a point from this match could be huge for the Indian women. End of 3rd quarter.

Punam Yadav in joint lead after snatch variant

India’s Punam Yadav nails her third attempt at 100 kgs to take joint lead with Fiji’s Apolonia Vaivai. Vaivai looks to open up a three kgs lead with a lift of 103 kgs in her third attempt but is unsuccessful.

GOAL! Navneet Kaur scores! India 1-1 England

Navneet Kaur bangs it in off a lovely pass from Vandana. India has lifted their game against the Olympic Champions. And that has paid off in the 3rd Q. It’s 1-1.

India’s Punam Yadav lifts 98 kgs in snatch variant of women’s 69kg class

Punam Yadav nails her second snatch lift of 98 kgs after lifting 95 kgs in her first in the 69kg women’s weightlifting event.

India 0-1 England

India playing with more confidence. Pushing on the flanks with Deepika overlapping. They need to avoid wrong passes. And find that equaliser.

Racewalker Soumya Baby disqualified

Soumya Baby has been disqualified from the women’s 20km racewalking as per rule 230.6 of the IAAF’s race rules. The rule states that a player will be disqualified for “lost of contact” or “bent knee”. Not good news for India.

India 0-1 England

That was close. India almost get the equaliser. Vandana’s shot is saved by the England goalkeeper. India are looking to play more positively and push the pace. The passes have to count in this quarter for India.

India 0-1 England

India have done well to hold the English forwards after that early goal. After all, England are Olympic Champion. If India can pull off a point, it would be a huge morale booster for them. But they need to hold at the midfield area and then put some pressure on the English defence. At the moment, it is 1-0 for England and they are dominating possession.

HT India 0-1 England

Three consecutive PC’s for England; one hitting the crossbar. India barely surviving here. The counter for India not coming as frequently as it should. There is no pressure being created on England. At the break, England lead 1-0. India need to create PC’s to be able to get the penalty corner battery working. Too many errors in the midfield giving away the ball.

India 0-1 England

England get three penalty corners in a row. The first one is slammed against the crosspiece. The remaining two are saved by India’s ‘keeper Savita. Still a minute to go in this half.

India 0-1 England

India still not able to make headway in troubling the English defence. England lead 1-0. They could easily have been a couple of goals up. Savita making some good saves. It’s the turnovers that are giving England the space inside the Indian territory.

India 0-1 England

England have started the second quarter on the front foot but India have been successful in repelling their attacks.

Manu Bhaker and Heena Sidhu qualify for 10m air pistol final

Manu Bhaker, 16-year-old Haryana shooting sensation, made a memorable debut in the Commonwealth Games by scoring a Games record in qualifying with 388. She started with two series of 98 each and followed up with two series of 96 each. The previous Games record for qualifying was 386 set by Australia’s Dina Aspandiyarova in Melbourne in 2006. Heena Sidhu overcame an opening series of 94 and another of 93 to qualify in second place, finishing with a total of 379. The final will be at 7.30 a.m. IST.

Manu Bhaker breaks CWG qualification record to qualify for final!

16-year-old Manu Bhaker has broken the CWG qualification record in the women’s 10m air pistol! The Haryana-born shooter shoots 388/400 to break Dina Aspandiyarova’s 12-year-old record! Heena Sidhu shoots 379/400 to also qualifies for the final in second spot!

India 0-1 England

Ever since the goal, the game has almost exclusively been played in England’s half. India get a penalty corner, which was contended by England and needed the video umpire to sort out. But India make a mess of the drag flick, with Monika mis-trapping the ball. She tries to make up for it with a hard hit to goal, which goes in, but it won’t count as no one touched the ball inside the circle.

India 0-1 England

India break into the rival circle twice in the space of two minutes. The first time India’s shot is too tepid to faze England keeper Hinch. The second time she saves well.

GOAL! India 0-1 England

The match has barely started and India are already a goal down! England stitch together a couple of nice passes before skipper Alexandra Danson gets on the end of a cross and slots it past Savita Punia in goal. Not a good start for the ladies.

Here’s how India lineup

Here is the Starting XI of the Indian Eves who will take on England in their third game of the @GC2018 Commonwealth Games on 8th April 2018. Catch the action LIVE on Sony SIX/SIX HD and https://t.co/C3ynNz0a49 at 5 AM (IST) today!#IndiaKaGame #HallaHockeyKa #INDvENG #GC2018 pic.twitter.com/bBM0jZhzrQ

— Hockey India (@TheHockeyIndia) April 7, 2018

India take on England in women’s hockey

Rani Rampal and Co take on England in their second Pool A encounter. India had lost their first match 3-2 to Wales before beating Malaysia 4-1.

Manish Rawat, KT Irfan sixth and thirteenth in 20km race walk

India’s Manish Rawat finished sixth and KT Irfan was a disappointing 13th in the 20km race walk, the opening event of the athletics competitions in the Commonwealth Games 2018 in Gold Coast. Manish Rawat, a 26-year-old Uttarakhand policeman,  clocked 1:22:22 in an eventful race, being warned twice for losing contact and picking up a yellow card for improper conduct under IAAF competition rule 125.5. He was with the leading bunch for a good part of eight kilometres. Irfan could not find the requisite pace after the first four kilometres but he willed himself on to complete the race in 1:27:34.

Heena, Manu primed to qualify for final

#gc2018shooting @ioaindia Manu Bhaker leading the qualification in 10m Air Pistol Women. @HeenaSidhu10 currently in 4th place. Top 8 move to the finals. #gc2018 #ShareTheDream @OGQ_India @OfficialNRAI @jaspalrana2806

— Joydeep Karmakar OLY (@Joydeep709) April 7, 2018

Skeet shooters Saniya Sheikh, Maheshwari Chauhan in action

Also in action are Saniya Sheikh and Maheshwari Chauhan who are taking part in the women’s skeet shooting qualification.

Heena Sidhu, Manu Bhaker in action

It’s time for shooting events and India’s Heena Sidhu and Manu Bhaker are in action in the women’s 10m air pistol qualification.

Manish Singh Rawat finishes 6th, KT Irfan 13th

Indian race walkers Manish Singh Rawat finishes 6th in the men’s 20km race walking with a time of 1.22.22. Meanwhile, KT Irfan finishes a disappointing 13th with a time of 1.27.34. 

Australia’s Dane Bird-Smith takes gold with a Games’ record time of 1.19.34, just 4 seconds ahead of England’s Tom Bosworth. Kenya’s Samuel Ireri Gathimba takes bronze with a time of 1.19.51.

Manish Singh and KT Irfan out of medal contention at 16 km mark

It is now a three-way battle for gold between England’s Tom Bosworth, Aussie Bird-Smith and Kenyan Samuel Ireri Gathimba as the rest of the walkers have fallen behind. Manish is 7th, 1.49 minutes while KT Irfan is way behind in 13th.

Manish Singh Rawat chases medal while KT Irfan falls back

At the 14 km mark, Manish Singh Rawat has managed to stay in the chasing pack behind Dane Bird-Smith. He’s 0.04 minutes behind in sixth. However, Irfan has fallen back and is currently 12th, 45 seconds behind the race leader. 

Day 4 schedule

Weightlifters add to India’s medal tally

Weightlifters Sathish Sivalingam and Venkat Rahul Ragala won gold in the men’s 77kg and 85kg class. Swimmers Srihari Natraj and Sajan Prakash made it to the finals of the 50m backstroke and 200 butterfly respectively. 

Race walkers KT Irfan and Manish Singh Rawat in action

KT Irfan and Manish Singh Rawat are in action in the men’s 20km race walk. At the halfway point, Manish is seventh, 0.02 minutes behind leader Dane Bird-Smith while Irfan is 0.06 minutes behind in tenth.

Hello and welcome to Live coverage of Day 4 of the Commonwealth Games 2018 as India look to add to their medal tally of six. On Day 3 of India won 2 gold medals in weightlifting as Sathish Sivalingam and Venkat Rahul Ragala.

On Day 4 Indian shooters will begin their campaign as India look to make headlines at Gold Coast. Keep following Firstpost’s Live blog for all the updates from CWG 2018