‘If Achanta Sharath Kamal was a country,’ says one. A new perspective on the veteran paddler’s performance in the 2022 CWG
Achanta Sharath Kamal won four medals at the Commonwealth Games in 2022. (three gold and one silver). He added to India’s total medal tally of 61. If Achanta had been a country, he would have finished 16th in the total medal count.
At the age of 40, Achanta Sharath Kamal is still going strong. The seasoned paddler won four medals, three of which were gold, at the 2022 Commonwealth Games. Furthermore, Achanta’s gold haul places her ahead of other nations on the Birmingham Games’ total medals list, including Pakistan, Samoa, Barbados, Ghana, Bermuda, Cameroon, and others.
During the Commonwealth Games, Achanta Sharath Kamal was near-perfect. His sole hiccup came in the men’s doubles final with partner Sathiyan Gnanasekaran. A defeat in the final forced the Indian pair to settle for silver; else, Achanta would have won four gold medals in the Birmingham Games.
Even with one silver and three gold medals, the Tamil Nadu paddler is well ahead of other nations that could not do what the Indians achieved on their own.
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Achanta wanted to achieve something remarkable in his farewell encounter in Birmingham, and despite falling down early in the game, he didn’t give up hope. In a thrilling comeback, he upset England’s Liam Pitchford 11-13, 11-7, 11-2, 11-5, 11-8.
It’s worth mentioning that Achanta and Sathiyan had previously lost in the men’s doubles final against the English combination of Pitchford and Paul Drinkhall. While Achanta won the gold medal match against Pitchford, Sathiyan won the bronze medal match against Drinkhall to complete India’s revenge over the English pair.
Aside from gold in men’s singles and silver in men’s doubles, Achanta also won gold in mixed doubles with India’s Sreeja Akula. The Indian Table Tennis team previously won the men’s team gold medal.
Achanta’s four medals helped India finish fourth overall with 61 medals at the Birmingham Games. In comparison, India won 66 medals in the 2018 Gold Coast Games. Earning 61 medals without shooting or archery is a great accomplishment in and of itself.