CWG 2022: Murali Sreeshankar Bags Historic Silver In Dramatic Men's Long Jump Final

Commonwealth Games 2022: Nairn, the Gold medal winner, also had also the best jump of 8.08m but his second best of 7.98m was better than the 7.84m of Sreeshankar.

CWG 2022: India's Murali Sreeshankar clinched a silver medal in the men's long jump event at the Commonwealth Games on Thursday. This is India's second medal from the Track and Field event during the Birmingham Games 2022. 

Sreeshankar, the 23-year-old national record holder, soared to 8.08m in his fifth attempt to finish second behind Laquan Nairn of Bahamas in the men's long jump final. The other Indian in the fray, Muhammed Anees Yahiya ended at fifth with a best jump of 7.97m.

Nairn, the Gold medal winner, also had also the best jump of 8.08m but his second best of 7.98m was better than the 7.84m of Sreeshankar.

Under rules, if two jumpers are tied on the same distance, the one with a better second-best effort will be ranked ahead. Jovan van Vuuren (8.06m) of South Africa took the bronze.

See Saw Battle For Medal

Sreeshankar had stepped in the CWG as a gold medal favourite on the basis of his season's and personal best attempt of 8.36m. His season-best had put him in joint second ranking in the world this season.

During the CWG 2022 men's long jump final event, Sreeshankar struggled in his first four jumps regarding his landing on the footboard. He began with an attempt of 7.64m before jumping an identical 7.84m in his second and third attempts. His fourth jump was a foul.

He was outside the medal contention at the end of the fourth round as he was in sixth place at that stage but his fifth attempt of 8.08m took him to second place.

In a dramatic final round jump, he seemed to have crossed the 8m mark -- which would assure him a gold -- but to his and the Indian contingent's disappointment, his foot landed 2cm ahead of the line on the footboard.

The final attempt was thus ruled as a foul and Sreeshankar had to settle for a silver.

Sreeshankar's Historic Medal

Sreeshankar became the first Indian male long jumper to win a silver at the CWG. Suresh Babu had won a bronze in the 1978 edition. Among women, Prajusha Maliakkal won a silver in the 2010 edition in Delhi, while legendary Anju Bobby George bagged a bronze in 2002.

It was Sreeshankar's first medal in a major international competition and a multi-sport event. Before this, he had won a bronze in the 2018 Asian U-20 Championships in Gifu, Japan.

On Wednesday, Tejaswin Shankar won a bronze in the men's high jump to open India's medal account in athletics in this CWG 2022.

(With PTI Inputs)