A glimmer of Olympic hope at last

It was a fabulous Super Sporting Sunday at long last. Four performances by Indian athletes in different parts of the world, two of them gold winning and all of them wins, has warmed the hearts of all success starved fans of Olympic sports in the country and provided a glimmer of hope. 

First shooters Elavenil Valarivan and Arjun Babuta stormed to gold at the 10m air rifle mixed team competition of the Asian Rifle/Pistol Shooting Championship at home in Delhi's hallowed Dr. Karni Singh Shooting Range with a world record effort. Critics would say it was a diminished field but the authority that the two seasoned pros now, displayed under the pressure of delivering at home, established that they are now shooting at a level second to none in the world.

Then news came in that the indomitable Tejaswin Shankar had shattered his own national Heptathlon record in Tianjin, China, enroute to gold with 5993 points, at the 12th Asian Indoor Athletics. His was the only gold of the five medals that India won at the meet and what made it special was the fact that he surpassed his record by close to 350 points in a confident display.

The third was by 20-year-old woman shuttler Devika Sihag, who clinched the Azerbaijan International in Baku with consummate ease, outclassing countrymate Navya Kanderi in the final. Although it wasn't a world class tournament, what made it special was that it came on the back of her maiden Super 300 victory in Thailand the week before. To win when you are expected to win, that too on the bounce is no mean feat.

Finally, great news came from back home in Bengaluru in the evening that India had defeated Netherlands 3-2 in the Davis Cup World Group first round qualifiers to be back among the sport's elite nations after 15 years. Dhakshineshwar Suresh did the star turn winning all his three matches, two singles and a double in partnership with senior pro Yuki Bhambri, bringing back memories of the days when Leander Paes used to  single-handedly win Davis Cup rubbers for the nation.

Why these four performances are particularly pleasing is because they have come from young athletes who ideally should be at the peak of their powers in the next three years. Even better, they seem to be having the right support system as well as competitive ecosystem in the country, which should help them improve every aspect of their game.

Most importantly, they seem to be in control of their performances and as is generally the case, weren't bogged down by the pressure of expectations. These are good signs.

Ela and Arjun will be pushed to go higher by not only by the world's top Olympic snipers but also with the quality back home. Devika has Tanvi Sharma, Anmol Kharb and Unnati Hooda as generation mates and Tejaswin has many top class performers like Murali Sreeshankar, Jyothi Yarraji, Avinash Sable and none better than former Olympic and World champ Neeraj Chopra alongside, when they travel together to compete for the nation.

Dhakshineshwar also has Sumit Nagal as travel mate and some young and talented boys like Karan Singh, Aryan Shah and Manas Dhamne, besides mentors Yuki, who will make him improve constantly to even get into the Indian Davis Cup team. 

The seeds planted years back have certainly begun to bloom and all credit should go to the Government of India, the Ministry of Sports, the National Federations and numerous private players who have provided crucial time, investment and support for this moment to arrive.

We can say it is definitely a beginning now but the crucial last mile would require meticulous planning. Everything is in place. If all get together, pull in the same direction, double digits in LA now looks achievable.