'If Achanta Sharath Kamal was a country...': A unique take on veteran paddler's CWG 2022 performance

Achanta Sharath Kamal bagged a total of 4 medals (3 gold and 1 silver) at the 2022 Commonwealth Games. He helped India get to a tally of 61 medals overall. However, if Achanta was a nation himself, he would've finished 16th in the overall medals tally.

Sahil Bakshi

Updated Aug 9, 2022, 07:54 IST

Achanta Sharath Kamal bagged 4 medals at 2022 Commonwealth Games

Photo : AP

KEY HIGHLIGHTS

Achanta Sharath Kamal bagged 3 gold and 1 silver medal from the 2022 Commonwealth Games.
Such a tally would put him 16th among the overall participating nations at the Birmingham Games.
Achanta's 4 medals helped India conclude the CWG 2022 at 4th position with 61 medals.

Even at the age of 40, Achanta Sharath Kamal continues going strong. The veteran paddler wrapped up his 2022 Commonwealth Games journey with four medals to his name, three of which were gold. What is mesmerising is that such a tally of medals puts Achanta ahead of several nations on the overall medals list at the Birmingham Games, including the likes of Pakistan, Samoa, Barbados, Ghana, Bermuda, Cameroon, etc.

Achanta Sharath Kamal was near flawless in the entire Commonwealth Games campaign. The only time he fumbled was with his partner Sathiyan Gnanasekaran in the men's doubles final. A defeat in the summit clash saw the Indian duo settle for a silver, otherwise, Achanta would've had 4 gold medals to his name from the Birmingham Games.

But, even with 1 silver and 3 gold medals, the paddler from Tamil Nadu sits way ahead of several nations who couldn't collectively achieve what the Indian alone did.

Arriving into his final match in Birmingham, Achanta wanted to do something special and he didn't lose hope despite going 1-game down early into the contest. He made a stunning comeback against England's Liam Pitchford, beating him 11-13, 11-7, 11-2, 11-5, 11-8.

What is interesting to note is that Achanta and Sathiyan had lost to the English duo of Pitchford and Paul Drinkhall in the men's doubles final. While Achanta got the better of Pitchford in the gold medal match, Sathiyan defeated Drinkhall in the bronze medal match to complete India's revenge over the English pair.

Other than the men's singles gold and men's doubles silver, Achanta had also won the mixed doubles gold medal for India, while pairing up with Sreeja Akula. The Indian Table Tennis team had earlier also won the men's team gold medal.

Achanta's four medals helped India secure a 4th place finish in the Birmingham Games with a total of 61 medals. In comparison, India had finished the 2018 Gold Coast Games with 66 medals to their name. But achieving 61 medals without shooting and archery is a big accomplishment in itself.

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