Awaiting a big buzz in Birmingham!

From Gold Coast to Birmingham, a lot has changed in Indian sport. The last four years have been one of learning and yearning as the Indian contingent arrived in the British Midlands.

The latest edition of the Commonwealth Games begins in the picturesque city of Birmingham on July 28. The 12-day programme is filled with sporting action across a gamut of disciplines, though, from India's perspective, the omission of shooting has generated considerable heartburn.

To be sure, India knew after the last edition in Gold Coast, shooting was out. Reasons for it were purely related to costs as setting up new ranges is an expensive proposition. After the National Rifle Association of India (NRAI) and the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) politicised the whole issue, it led to a lot of rancour. In the end, one thought, India would be hosting the shooting competition of the Birmingham Games in Chandigarh. Laughable that was, as it has never happened in the history of the Games that another country would step in as a part-host.

Britain being the head of the Commonwealth for many reasons, the Commonwealth Games Federation was never really interested in hosting the shooting event across the world in another country. Hopes were raised, wrongly. In the end, shooting is out, and that's not just for India, but for every other participating country.

Viewed dispassionately, hosting a multi-discipline Games is not easy. With the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic in early 2020, sporting events suffered the most. That competitive sport limped back to life is thanks to the medical marvels and innovations around the world. And here, India owes a lot to the Britain-based AstraZeneca for the way the Covishield vaccines have been used at home as life-savers. Of course, there are more vaccine options available, but Covishield has been a big hit.

The good part is that the Indian athletes have not resisted the vaccines, unlike tennis icon Novak Djokovic. India won 66 medals at the Gold Coast Games in Australia in 2018. Of those, 16 were from shooting. India was placed overall third in the medal tally.

Can India harvest another rich haul and ensure that the sporting morale is kept high is the million-dollar question? The term "million-dollar" stems from the fact that large sums of money are spent on various athletes' training, camps, and hiring coaches, physios and other experts from overseas.

Add to it the cost of sending athletes abroad for boot camps; one has to be thankful to the Central Government for its large-hearted funding. There are many sports NGOs as well which are chipping in, but the major spender is the Indian government.

If one gazes at the crystal ball for India's medal aspects at the Birmingham Games, there is room for optimism — optimism which stems from performances and preparations that have been put in. Let's forget shooting and move on. Shooting has done little worth noting in the last two editions of the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro in 2016 and Tokyo 2020 — which was held last year. Petty politics and taking pot shots brought into limelight what ails Indian shooting.

The time has come when we need to look at the brighter side of Indian sport vis-à-vis the Commonwealth Games. And here, the medal prospects are huge. The quality and quantity of athletes who will be representing India in Birmingham are good.

Gone are the days when we bandied about medal prospects, where only a few names were propped up. Viewed from the global prism, India is not a sporting superpower. Yet, the results achieved in Tokyo by the able-bodied and Paralympic athletes went on to show that there are many champions who have gone full tilt to give their best efforts.

Before the Games, there was a lot of bickering at home about India's participation in Birmingham. It is not the shooters alone and their officials who were crying hoarse. The threat to not send hockey teams was wrong, though things have fallen in place, finally. The same applied to the T20 cricket competition as well, where the Indian cricket board (BCCI), in all its wisdom, decided not to send a men's team but only the women's team. Reasons attributed for not sending the men's cricket are unspecified, which leads to a lot of intrigue.

Coming to medal prospects, one has to reflect on performances made by the track and field athletes in Eugene, Oregon. There have been a few positives, with names of Annu Rani also ringing a bell. Indian

athletics today is not just about one Olympic gold medallist, Neeraj Chopra. Despite the recent doping scandal rocking Indian athletes last week, there is hope and hype we can do much better in athletics. The field is rich and the standards are high. Possibility of winning a few medals from track and field cannot be ruled out.

Boxing is one sport where Indian athletes have been performing well. In Tokyo, Lovlina Borgohain created ripples. This time around, apart from Lovlina, we also have the bubbly Nikhat Zareen who will be the cynosure for several reasons. Gone are the days when Indian women's boxing meant only MC Mary Kom would win medals. There is depth and punch, with the men's section needing to deliver this time as well.

Call it timing or her sincere efforts, the way Indian badminton has peaked in recent years has been fascinating. It seems like yesterday PV Sindhu won a silver medal at the Rio Olympics. Her hard work and putting heart and soul into training daily has ensured she remains the beacon of Indian badminton. The tall and athletic Hyderabadi lass capped a brilliant week in Singapore. So, why not hope for a medal from Sindhu. She won bronze in Tokyo and what stands out is her work ethic and ability to keep performing.

The men's section, too, looks impressive. With the arrival of young Lakshya Sen, Indian men's badminton has started looking strong. He is definitely a medal prospect, though, to think it will be a cakewalk in the Commonwealth Games would be foolhardy. India did fairly well in badminton the last time in Gold Coast. With the doubles pairs also shining, one can hope the shuttlers will clinch medals.

How can one forget Indian weightlifting and wrestling? When Mirabai Chanu won a silver medal at the Tokyo Olympics, it was a moment of joy for the entire nation. The diminutive athlete from Manipur had been at her wits end to get fit after the disaster at Rio. Her perseverance, getting her body back in shape and then peaking at the right time climaxed in Tokyo. Mirabai still has the hunger, and with more young faces to be seen, Indian weightlifting looks good. Add to it the young man Jeremy Lalrinnunga's presence, the wish-list of medals is growing!

Wrestling has been India's forte for a long time. In freestyle, we have produced a medley of medals where the men and women have chipped in well. As much as one expects medals from Bajrang Punia and Ravi Kumar Dahiya, the return of Rio bronze medallist Sakshi Malik is great. She was out in the wilderness after her highs in Rio. A mix of taking things casually, getting beaten by the fresh lot of grapplers did shock her. However, Sakshi and the controversy-stricken Vinesh Phogat will be viewed with an enormous amount of interest, this time.

Britain is in the grip of an unprecedented heat wave. London is reeling under such long and dry spells of sunshine (or heat), the common man has been hit hard. Mercifully, Birmingham is in the British Midlands, where the temperatures are cooler. No Indian athlete will be able to offer an excuse they could not cope with the heat.

India as a nation is expecting its athletes to generate the heat at the Commonwealth Games where disciplines like gymnastics, cycling, swimming, and women's T20 cricket will be major attractions. Not to forget, the hockey teams, men and women, also need to fire. The women's cricket team will hope to peak in Edgbaston, the same venue where the men lost the Test match. Hopefully, there will be a change in script at the same venue.

No narration about India's chances at the CWG is complete without a mention of the prospects of medals from the para-athletes in sporting disciplines like athletics, powerlifting, table tennis and swimming. The Para athletes were brilliant in Tokyo. They have the passion and hunger to win medals and create records.

Over to Birmingham, which will hold us in thrall from July 28 to August 8. Hopefully, India will shine like a beacon, minus any adverse dope test findings.

Views expressed are personal