India at Tokyo Olympics: 5 athletes closing on podium finish ft PV Sindhu, Lovlina Borgohain, Hockey- After Mirabai Chanu’s heroics, India’s contingent have hit a rough patch, and are still waiting for their second medal at the Olympics. While there is still a long way to go, some of India’s medal favourites have made a bright start to their campaigns with the Boxing contingent making giant strides. A handful of Indian athletes have made it to the quarter-finals, putting them within touching distance of a podium finish. Here’s a look at five athletes who are within touching distance of sealing Olympic glory for India.
India at Tokyo Olympics: Badminton- PV Sindhu (Quarter-final vs Akane Yamaguchi)
PV Sindhu eased into the quarter-finals of the Women’s Singles and will take on fourth seed Akane Yamaguchi in the quarter-finals. A familiar foe, Sindhu has a favourable record over the Japanese shuttler, 11-7 in their head-to-head. So far, in her Tokyo Olympics campaign, Sindhu has won all her matches in straight sets. Sindhu won her last match against Yamaguchi in the All England Open 2021 where they played a nail-biter before Sindhu won, 16-21, 21-16, 21-19 and will hope for a similar result on Friday. While Yamaguchi is seeded higher, the Indian shuttler will hope to her Olympics tally, having won the silver medal at the Rio Olympics.
India at Tokyo Olympics: India Men’s Hockey Team
India men’s hockey team has already sealed qualification for the quarter-finals before playing their final group game against hosts Japan. While the Men in Blue were thrashed by Australia 7-1, they clinched memorable wins over New Zealand (3-2), Spain (3-1) and Argentina (4-1). India last won a medal in field hockey in 1980, when they clinched gold, and Manpreet Singh and Co. will be aiming for a podium finish after an impressive group stage display.
India at Tokyo Olympics: Boxing- Lovlina Borgohain (quarter-final vs Chen Nien-Chin)
Featuring in her maiden Olympics campaign, Lovlina Borgohain has emerged as a medal hopeful from India and gears up to take Chinese Taipei’s Chen Nien-Chin. Borgohain is just one win away from a podium finish and secured her place in the quarter-finals with a hard-fought win over German veteran Nadine Apetz. The 23-year-old faces a stern test in Chinese Taipei’s Nien-Chin Chen, who is seeded fourth and a former world champion. She was also a silver-medallist at the 2019 Asian Championships and defeated Italy’s Angela Carini 3-2 in her pre-quarterfinal bout. A win confirms a podium finish, which will make her the second Indian female boxer after Mary Kom to clinch an Olympic medal.
India at Tokyo Olympics: Boxing- Pooja Rani (Quarter-final vs Li Qian)
Like Lolvina Boroghain, Pooja Rani is also one win away from an assured medal at her maiden Olympics campaign. Rani made it to the quarters getting the better of Algeria’s Ichrak Chaib in her opening bout with a 5-0 result. The 30-year-old will face a difficult bout as she takes on Olympic bronze-medallist, two-time Asian champion, and former world gold-medallist Li Qian of China. Should Rani prevail, it would mark a great personal triumph for the pugilist from Haryana, who has battled career-threatening injuries.
India at Tokyo Olympics: Boxing- Satish Kumar (Quarter-final vs Bakhodir Jalolov)
Satish Kumar had already created history as he became the first Indian to compete in the super heavyweight category in the Olympics. Kumar got his Olympics debut off to a fine start, clinching a place in the quarters with a resounding win over Jamaica’s Ricardo Brown. He will now face off against Uzbekistan’s Bakhodir Jalolov, a multiple Asian and World Championships winner. He comes into the Olympics on the back of a gold medal in the 2021 Asian Championships and had won the gold in the 2019 World Championships.
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