For India, there were some momentous occasions to cherish forever in the sports arena this year amid the pall of gloom surrounding the Covid-19 pandemic. These memorable moments were not restricted to the nation’s favourite sport, cricket. Sports personalities from a variety of domains made this year special for Indians. So, it is time to check out the glorious sporting feats of 2021.
New Poster Boy Of Indian Sports
Prior to the Tokyo Olympics, Neeraj Chopra was just another youngster trying to make his mark in Javelin. But post 2020 games, he instantly turned into a global heartthrob. On August 7 this year, Chopra brought India the yellow metal, which has been eluding the country since 2008. With a throw of 87.58 in the final, the young lad from Haryana won second individual Gold for India in Olympics. Apart from being the second sportsman to pocket the yellow metal in Olympics, Chopra also became the first Indian athlete to accomplish the mission of securing the Gold medal.
Men’s Team Ends Dry Spell In Hockey
The national game of India has had to go through some torrid times at the Olympics for close to five decades. Our Hockey teams, both men and women, were struggling to make an impact in the Olympics since 1980 despite securing Gold in 1948, 52, 56, 64 and 80. However, in the 2020 Tokyo games, the men’s team finally put an end to the prolonged drought by winning the Bronze medal in the play-off for the third spot against the Germans. This apart, even the women’s team put up a commendable performance in the games but missed the medal by a whisker against Great Britain.
Avani’s Double Bonanza At Paralympics
Avani Lekhara, a 20-year-old from Rajasthan, entered the history books when she won Gold in 10 m air rifle standing and Bronze in 50 m rifle 3 positions. As a result of the double strike, Lekhara became the first woman athlete to accomplish the same. By securing 249.6 points in the final event, the young shooter created a Paralympic record as well as leveled the world record. For a traumatic car crash survivor, this is indeed a dream-come-true moment, and for everyone, in general, it sends out a message not to give up irrespective of the circumstances.
Pant’s Heroics Help Breach Gabba Fortress & Pocket Series
Earlier this year our cricket team did the unthinkable away from the comfort zone of home conditions and under immense crises. After missing Virat Kohli for the better part of the series and a spate of injuries to frontline bowlers, nobody gave this team, comprising a bunch of inexperienced youngsters led by a new captain, any chance in the Border Gavaskar Trophy being held in Australia. But the outfit fought valiantly to keep the series alive (1/1) till the final Test at Brisbane, Gabba. Then in the decider, thanks to Rishabh Pant’s unbeaten 98 and important contributions from Gill, Pujara etc in the second innings, India eventually chased down a tricky 328 on the final day of the Test to grab the series 2-1 in the end.
