CWG 2018, Day 2, as it happened: Sanjita’s gold, Lather’s bronze brings cheer to the Indian camp

6.02 pm: Australia have found their touch in the pool and have shot to a big lead. All the medal events for Day 2 are now over and here is what the medal tally looks like:

5.59 pm: India’s Pranati Nayak has qualified for Vault finals abd Pranati Das for All Around finals. It’s official now.

Pranati Nayak sneaked into the Vault Finals at 8th Position.

And Pranati Das will go to Individual All Around Finals at 18th Place. India will have one Apparatus Finalist and one All Around Finalist in the Women’s Artistic Section.

4.56 pm: Updates from the swimming pool.

– South Africa’s Chad le Clos moved a step closer to becoming the most successful athlete in Commonwealth Games history by sweeping to gold in the men’s 50m butterfly. Four-time world champion le Clos took full advantage of title-holder Ben Proud’s absence to win in 23.37 seconds. He is now just five medals behind shooters Mick Gault and Philip Adams, who lead the all-time Commonwealth Games tally with 18.

– England’s Olympic champion Adam Peaty limbered up for the defence of his Commonwealth 100m breaststroke crown by setting a Games record of 58.59 in the semi-finals

– In the 200m freestyle final, Australian Kyle Chalmers powered to victory. Olympic 100m champ Chalmers touched in 1:45.56 as fellow Aussie Mack Horton pinched silver in 1:45.89 from lane one. Duncan Scott (1:46.30) took bronze for Scotland while le Clos faded over the final lap to finish seventh.

– Sarah Vasey took down gold medal favourite Alia Atkinson to snatch a shock gold medal in the 50m breaststroke after a powerful finish, leaving the Jamaican flag-bearer with silver for the second successive Games.

– Australia’s Cate Campbell qualified fastest for the women’s 50m freestyle final as she edged out sister Bronte to clock a Games record of 23.88 seconds.

4.54 pm: New Zealand boxer David Nyika alleged that his opponent bit him twice in an “ugly” fight as he launched his bid for a second Commonwealth Games gold on Friday.

The 22-year-old heavyweight defeated Yakita Aska of Antigua and Barbuda 5-0 on Australia’s Gold Coast, but said the 91kg bout was far tougher than the scores suggested.

“It’s probably the closest fight I’ve had. A little bit rugged, but a perfect start to a long tournament,” said Nyika, who won 81kg gold at Glasgow 2014 as a teenager.

“When they don’t want to win, they want to survive, it’s tough. I copped a couple of bite marks, a couple of low blows.

“It’s a tough fight. He bit me in the end, but that’s the sport we’re in.

“Fair play to him: it’s kill or be killed.”

There was no immediate response from Aska to the allegation, but the 28-year-old said: “He is one of the best. He won gold at the last Commonwealth Games so it was a bad draw for me.

“He is a very strong kid.”

Nyika, who will face Cameroon’s Christian Ndzie Tsoye in Tuesday’s quarter-finals, repeated the biting claim later on Instagram, when he joked: “Don’t worry guys, I’ve had my tetanus shots.” (AFP)

4.12 pm: Been an okay day for India. Here’s what the medal tally looks like.

3.07 pm: Indian cyclers Sahil Kumar, Ranjit Singh and Sanuraj Sanandaraj have all failed to progress from the Men’s Keirin first round.

3.02 pm: Weightlifter Saraswati Rout is unable to add to India’s medal tally as she fails in all three of her Snatch attempts in the women’s 58 kg category. She can take no further part in the final.

3 pm: Easy peasy for Amit as he wins his bout 5-0 via a unanimous decision. Over to the quarter-finals!

2.40 pm: Indian boxer Amit’s Round of 16 bout against Ghana’s Tetteh Sulemanu has begun in the men’s 46-49 kg category.

2.21 pm: The weightlifting women’s 58 kg final has just begun, in which India’s Saraswati Rout, 22, is participating. Her declared starting attempt for Snatch is 78 kg, which is the third highest in the field.

2.05 pm: Joshna Chinappa hardly broke a sweat as she takes just 22 minutes to beat Tamika Saxby in straight games. Chinappa progresses to the quarter-finals of the women’s singles.

2 pm: Dipika Pallikal Karthik has been knocked out in the pre-quarters by England’s Alison Waters, who won in straight games.

1.55 pm: It’s 2-0 to Chinappa as she takes the second game 11-8. She was leading 6-0 but let it slip a bit towards the end. In the adjacent court, Chinappa’s compatriot Dipika Pallikal Karthik isn’t doing so well and is trailing 0-2 to England’s Alison Waters.

1.48 pm: Joshna Chinappa has won the first game rather comfortably. She’s cruising so far.

1.40 pm: Joshna Chinappa has just taken the court against Australia’s Tamika Saxby in the squash women’s singles Round of 16. Stay tuned for updates.

1.30 pm: India wrap up their third 5-0 clean sweep in the mixed-team badminton championship as Pranaav Jerry Chopra and Sikki Reddy beat Scotland’s Martin Campbell and Julie Macpherson 21-17, 21-15. India progress to the quarter-finals unbeaten!

12.20 pm: And that is the moment. Special performance by the teenager from India. Deepak Lather, take a bow.

12.10 pm: And that is the bronze medal for the 18-year-old Deepak Lather. Vaipava IOANE (SAM) decided to go for gold with a clean and jerk attempt at 175 but he failed twice at the weight. It meant that Lather won the bronze. Wonderful effort by all involved. A truly riveting competition comes to an end.

11.55 am: Deepak gets three red lights. His third clean and jerk attempt at 162 kg doesn’t go as he would have liked. He still has a chance at a medal though. This is so close. It will come down to Vaipava IOANE (SAM), who is slated to start his clean and jerk at 170.

11.45 am: Deepak Lather cleanly lifts 159 kg in his second Clean and Jerk attempt to take him to the top of the table for now! But the big guns are still coming in.

11.27 am: Here we go! Lather takes it up to 155 kg! He is pushing for gold here. He had initially listed his starting weight as 153 kg. But he took it up here. It shows how tight the competition is. His coach says that Lather has done up to 160 kg before. He will need that.

11.25 am: Still a while before Deepak Lather comes on for his clean and jerk attempts. But this fight for gold is going to go right down to the wire. It is between these three for now:

11.01 am: Meanwhile, in squash, India’s Vikram Malhotra has lost in the Men’s Singles Round of 16. No Indians left in the competition now.

10.40 am: India’s Deepak Lather gets into the act. Superb first lift. 132 and he made it look easy.

His second lift – 136 – wasn’t easy but he just powered through it. Great power and determination shown.

But he failed with his third lift – 138. Just couldn’t power it up. Still he is in second place at the end of the snatch. Can he carry this through to the clean and jerk too?

10.08 am: Women’s hockey: India beat Malaysia

India went down 2-3 to Wales in their opener at Gold Coast, as Rani Rampal and co. were guilty of squandering too many chances against an opponent, ranked 16 places below them. But they did superbly against Malaysia to win 4-1.

6th minute: Gurjit sends India ahead after a PC. Ind 1-0 Mal.
37th minute: Nurani Rashid scored from a direct PC. Ind 1-1 Mal.
38th minute: Gurjit strikes back with a wonderful PC. Ind 2-1 Mal.
55th minute: Skipper Rani Rampal seals the deal. Ind 3-1 Mal.
59th minute: Lalremsiami with a wonderful field goal. Ind 4-1 Mal.

For a detailed live blog, go HERE

10.05 am: India’s Amritha Reghunath, Sonali Mayanglambam fail to qualify for medal round in Women’s 3000m Individual Pursuit Cycling event.

10.00 am: Arka Bhattacharya on the young Deepak Lather, whose weightlifting event has just begun.

Deepak Lather is 17, and is anything but your regular teenager. At 15, he became the youngest lifter to have a national record and also won the national championships, culminating in his participation at the World Championships in Houston. From the village of Shadipur in Haryana, Lather, originally a diver, broke the Commonwealth Youth record two years ago in Samoa. Can the teenage prodigy replicate that effort at Gold Coast?

9.39 am: The Medal event is about to begin. Men’s 69kg in Weightlifting. India’s Deepak Lather will have a pretty good chance.

9.32 am: Badminton competition has begun. India is taking on Scotland in the mixed team competition.

Saina Nehwal started things off against Julie Macpherson. She won 21-14, 21-12. Pretty easy going. The Indian rarely ever pushed herself. India lead 1-0.

9.13 am: The boxing is on!

Men’s 91kg Round of 16: Naman TANWAR (IND) vs Haruna MHANDO (TAN).

Round 1: Tanwar, just 19, looking supremely confident, he is fighting with his hands down by his sides and got an early down with a straight jab. It seemed to take the the Tanzanian by surprise. But first round to the Indian for sure.

Round 2: Massive height and reach advantage for the Indian. He is dominating the proceedings. The commentators are saying, ‘his confidence is beyond his skill level’. But another round for the Indian.

Round 3: Tanwar is looking pretty good. He is toying with his opponent. Shifting his weight and punching from unusual angles. He looks like a solid, solid talent. For a big guy, he has very impressive agility.

Tanwar wins a points decision and he made it look easy.

09.08 am: Vinesh Phogat was laid low by an injury during practice but she is all set to go to the Gold Coast now.

09.01 am: Women’s Sprint Qualifying (Cycling) has come to an end. Deborah and Reji have qualified for the next round which will happen a little later in the day. Deborah’s average speed was 62.696 km/h. Australia’s Stephanie MORTON finished top of qualifying, establishing a Games record. Her average speed was 68.415.

8.57 am: Coming up next though is boxing!

Men’s 91kg Round of 16: Naman TANWAR (IND) vs Haruna MHANDO (TAN). That bout is scheduled to begin at 9.02 am.

8.43 am: Next big event is the Men’s 69kg in Weightlifting. Chanu has already struck gold earlier in the day and India’s Deepak Lather will have a pretty good chance. If one goes by the starting weights, he should have a pretty good chance at a medal. But, of course, a competitor might go well past their best. A look at some of Deepak’s major competition. The event begins at 09.30 am.

8.22 am: Sports Minister Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore is trilled with Sanjita’s gold. Remember, she had won the gold in Glasgow four years ago too, but that was in the 48 kg category.

7.55 am: India’s swimmer Kiran Tak finished last in her women’s S9 100m backstroke heat with a rather poor timing compared with the rest.

7.35 am: Sanjita Chanu ensures that the Indian national anthem is played at Gold Coast for the second consecutive day. Super stuff from the two Chanus – Sanjita and Mirabai!

7.30 am: Here are the three medallists in the women’s 53 kg weightlifting:

7.25 am: Sanjita Chanu has won GOLD!

Sanjita successfully lifted 104 kg and 108 kg in her first two Clean and Jerk attempts, which more or less assured her of the gold. However, she failed to lift an ambitious 112 kg in her final attempt, which gave Papua New Guinea’s Loa Dika Toua an outside chance of snatching the gold if she managed to lift 113 kg in her final attempt. Dika Toua tried but could not lift it. Both lifters hugged each other after their final attempts. Incredible scenes!

6.58 am: Right, we’re down to the biggies in the women’s 53 kg final Clean and Jerk. These three lifters should share the medals.

6.45 am: Ghana’s Ruth Baffoe showboats again after her final Clean and Jerk attempt of 90 kg. However, she celebrated too soon this time as her attempt was declared failed because she bent her right arm during the jerk! Pity!

6.20 am: Sanjita Chanu has a 3 kg lead over her closest opponent going into the Clean and Jerk section. Canada’s Rachel LeBlanc-Bazinet had lifted 81 kg in Snatch.

6.15 am: She’s done it! Sanjita Chanu first equals the Commonwealth Games record in the women’s 53 kg Snatch category in her 2nd attempt (83 kg) and then breaks it in the 3rd (84 kg)! Incredible!!

The previous Games record was set by Sanjita’s compatriot Swarti Singh four years ago in Glasgow.

6.07 am: India’s Sanjita Chanu successfully lifts 81 kg in her first Snatch attempt in the women’s 53 kg final! She’s off to a good start. Come on!

5.55 am: Some showboating from Ghana’s Ruth Baffoe after a successful 77 kg final Snatch attempt in the women’s 53 kg final! She was thrilled after that effort!

5.42 am: Nigeria’s Fatima Yakubu cleanly lifted 74 kg in her first Snatch attempt but was declared failed because she was too late to come onto the mat! Moments before she was about to come on, officials were seen moving her bib from one leg to the other, which delayed her start. Why they realised it so late is still not clear. Understandably, Yakubu was furious after the attempt.

5.27 am: While we wait for Sanjita Chanu’s turn, the Indian women’s artistic gymnastics team is also in action in the women’s team final and individual qualification.

5.13 am: Here is the start list for the women’s 53 kg weightlifting final. Sanjita Chanu is scheduled to start second from last.

5.08 am: Remember, Sanjita Chanu had won gold in Glasgow 2014 but that was in the 48 kg category. She is competing in the 53 kg category at Gold Coast 2018. We’re almost ready for the women’s 53 kg weightlifting final. Grab your coffee!

4.57 am: Almost time for the weightlifting women’s 53 kg final. India’s Sanjita Chanu has declared first attempts of 80 kg in Snatch and 103 kg in Clean and Jerk, which are the highest in the pack. If she is successful, a gold medal should be in her hands soon!

4.47 am: The lawn bowling has kicked off nice and early, with India’s Pinki taking on Fiji’s Litia Tikoisuva in the Women’s Singles Sectional Play - Section D, Round 3. The Indian men’s team is also in action against England in the Men’s Triples Sectional Play - Section A, Round 3.

4.40 am: India’s Sanjita Chanu Khumukcham will be looking to replicate Mirabai Chanu’s heroics in the women’s 53 kg weightlifting final, which will begin at 5 am IST. Stay tuned for updates...

4.35 am: Here’s how Mirabai Chanu won her gold medal on Day 1. Incredible.

4.22 am: At the end of Day 1, India were seventh in the medals table with one gold and a silver. England lead the tally with six golds, three silvers and three bronzed. Can India make further headway on Day 2?

4.20 am: Six clean lifts. Multiple records.

That’s what Mirabai Chanu managed on her way to what was expectedly an easily-managed gold medal at the 21st Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast on Thursday. However, while the gold was never in doubt, Mirabai showed just how special a talent she is. Arka Bhattacharya has more.

4 am: Good morning and welcome to The Field’s live blog for Day 2 of the Commonwealth Games 2018 at Gold Coast, Australia.

For India, the action begins with artistic gymnastics, where Pranati Das, Pranati Nayak and Aruna Budda Reddy will be in action in the women’s team pursuit and individual qualification starting 4.40 am IST.

Sanjita Chanu Khumukcham will then compete in the women’s 53 kg weightlifting final, where she will look to replicate Mirabai Chanu’s heroics.

The Indian badminton team is also in action against their toughest group opponents, Scotland, in the mixed-team championship, whereas the Indian women’s hockey team will look to get over their narrow 2-3 loss to Wales in the Games opener by trying to beat Malaysia.

You can check out the entire Indian schedule for Friday here.

And in case you missed Thursday’s events, here is a round-up.