Let's have a look at some of the controversies that have marred the Indian contingent.
The Commonwealth Games 2022 is drawing to its end with most events already having been finished or reaching their end, however, the controversies surrounding the Games, especially related to the Indian contingent do not seem to end.
In fact, some controversies even began before the start of the CWG 2022 with sports like archery and shooting not being included in the Birmingham edition.
So let's have a look at some of the controversies that have marred the Indian contingent.
1. Shooting and Archery excluded from Birmingham Commonwealth Games?
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Shooting had made its debut in CWG 1966 and for the first time since its inception, the event did not make the cut. Shooting was excluded from the roster for Birmingham Games due to "logistical issues."
The Indian Olympic Association threatened to boycott the event in July 2019, however, following a visit by CGF President Louise Martin and CEO David Grevemberg in November, the side withdrew its warning in December.
Not just shooting, even Archery, was also an optional sport under CWG charter, but unlike shooting, archery was included in just two CWG editions, the last being the New Delhi Games in 2010.
2. Lovlina Borgohain stranded after leaving CWG opening ceremony midway
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Olympic bronze medallist Indian boxer Lovlina Borgohain was left stranded for close to an hour after deciding to leave the Commonwealth Games opening ceremony midway.
The ceremony which went on for about two hours saw Lovlina and another boxer Muhammad Hussamuddin decide to leave early for the Games Village which is a 30-minute drive
"We want to train in the morning as we have a bout day after. The ceremony will go on for a while so we thought of leaving. We asked for a taxi but we were told that was not available," said Lovlina when PTI asked her why she was leaving midway.
With the ceremony still on and the duo unable to book a taxi on their own, Lovlina and Hussamuddin were left clueless about how to ride back to their accommodation. They eventually took the first bus bound for the Village near the National Exhibition Centre.
3. Controversy around Indian women's table tennis squad
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The Indian women's table tennis team were marred by controversy and it had surfaced in the middle of their Commonwealth Games campaign.
India, who went into the tournament as defending champions, saw the designated women's coach Anindita Chakraborty, not be seen in the knockout fixture. Instead, the men's coach S Raman was seen sitting on the courtside.
After the shocking loss against Malaysia, the Manika Batra-led squad did not even wait for the media interaction, which is a standard protocol in all multi-sporting events.
Team sources confirmed to PTI that all is not well in the camp. "The atmosphere in the team is the not best, let's just say that. The women's coach should have been sitting courtside since she knows more about the players. Don't know why Raman decided to sit instead," the source said.
4. Murali Sreeshankar's attempt in Long Jump Final sparks controversy
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Indian athlete Murali Sreeshankar scripted history after he became India's first male athlete to clinch a medal in the Long Jump event.
He had registered the best effort of 8.08m in the Men's Long Jump final and clinched the silver medal. While he had his eye on the gold medal and could have got the same, he ended up committing two fouls and was awarded the silver medal.
Sreeshankar had made a sensational comeback in his 5th attempt with a jump of 8.08m and in his 6th and last attempt saw him make another foul.
However, Sreeshankar and many sports enthusiasts questioned the foul after looking at the video evidence of the jump. He lost on the gold medal by a millimetre and fans were unhappy about the same.
5. IND vs AUS women's hockey semi-final controversy
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Indian Women's hockey team had gone toe-to-toe against Australia Women's hockey team in the semi-final of Commonwealth Games 2022 on Friday. However, Australia emerged victorious 3-0 in the shootout, but there was plenty of drama before that.
With Savita having saved Malone's effort, the Indians had a good chance of scoring with their first shot to take the lead and put pressure on the Australians.
However, that was not the case as they were rattled by the strange decision by the umpire and missed all their three shots. The incident has since become a talking point on social media.
