Birmingham: Star paddler G Sathiyan bagged his maiden Commonwealth Games 2022 singles medal as he won bronze, beating home-favourite Paul Drinkhall 4-3 in front of a packed crowd on Monday in Birmingham.
G Sathiyan avenged his men's doubles final loss against Drinkhall and triumphed 11-9 11-3 11-5 8-11 9-11 10-12 and 11-9 to win a bronze medal.
The bronze was Sathiyan's sixth overall medal at the Commonwealth Games since Gold Coast 2018 and back-to-back medals in as many days.
Few days back on Sunday, G Sathiyan paired up with the veteran Table Tennis player Achanta Sharath Kamal to win the men's doubles silver after going down to the English duo of Drinkhall and Liam Pitchford.
Sharath Kamal and G Sathiyan settle for silver in men's doubles final
The seasoned Indian pair of Sharath Kamal and G Sathiyan was outsmarted by familiar foes Paul Drinkhall and Liam Pitchford of England in the men's doubles final at the Commonwealth Games here on Sunday.
The Indian duo had to settle for silver for the second successive edition after losing 11-8, 8-11, 3-11, 11-7, 4-11 to the English combine.
It was a repeat of the 2018 final in Gold Coast and to the disappointment of the Indians, it was the same result.
The Indian contingent has been getting tons of support from the crowd here but at the NEC table tennis arena on Sunday, English fans outnumbered the Indians. The Indians were able to take the final to the decider after course correction in the fourth game.
However, Drinkhall and Pitchford took a huge six point lead from 4-4 to gain six gold medal points in the fifth game. They converted the very first one drawing a huge roar from the crowd. The Indian pair shook hand with its opponents who once again proved better on the day.