Abhinav Bindra, a supremely cool character, ice in his veins, won gold in the 10m Rifle contest, a day after announcing on twitter that these were his last Commonwealth Games.

Bindra had shot very consistently to reach a total of 205.3 points, more than three points clear of Bangladesh’s Abdullah Baki. It was a very relaxed performance, for Bindra shot high scores all through, his worst shot in the final being 9.6.

After winning gold, Bindra, laconic and ironic as always, declared: “Ya, I’m a terrorist.” He’d just been told that journalists were terrorised by his short, snappy and seemingly disdainful answers. Just for once, why didn’t he open his heart a bit and say that yes, he was delighted, over the moon, going crazy with joy?

But Bindra doesn’t do emotion. Moments after winning gold, he seemed completely oblivious of his feat. He seemed to be unaware that his gold had excited a lot of people — as journalists and crowds milled around him, he seemed to wonder what this hoopla was all about. The man he beat to gold today, Bangladesh’s Baki Abdullah, tried to give him a hug – but Bindra was having none of it.

He looks so cool, isn’t he happy at all, that he’s won gold? “Well, what should I be doing?” he asks. Well, what about performing a somersault, or walking on his hands? Anyone else who’s won a medal today – let alone gold – is laughing and joking and smiling. So why not laugh a bit?

Not Bindra.

Success in shooting requires amazing coolness – the heart must not beat too fast, the blood in the veins must not flow too fast, the hand and the arm must not shake. Emotion transmits tremors to the gun – that’s bad. Shooters like to be always in control. Bindra, though, seems to has reached a very high level of Zen-ness.

But he doesn’t completely lack emotion – scorn and disdain and boredom seem to be written all over his face.

He did pump his fist when gold was assured for him, but that was all. His first gold in the Commonwealth Games came way back in 2002 in Manchester. He’ll be 32 in September, there is a generous streak of grey in his hair. He’s perhaps had enough, perhaps he’s tired of the grind? Or perhaps he feels that he’s got nothing more to achieve now? “Well, I might be back at the next Commonwealth Games as a journalist… Journalism is easy, you know,” he says. Someone asks him: “Who is the Tom you mentioned on twitter?” “Tom meant ‘tomorrow’,” he says with a straight face. Tom, tomorrow — this seems like a good joke, but Bindra won’t laugh.

Bindra was always very cool. When he won the gold medal at the Beijing Olympics in 2008, he was asked at a media event where his gold medal was. “Oh, I’ve forgotten to bring it,” he answered in his usual dazed manner. When he was once asked how he was feeling after finishing a round, he said, “I just want to go to the loo.” Bindra has always been like that — bewilderingly laconic, unwittingly funny, a champ always well in control.

Carnoustie (Scotland), July 25
Malaika Goel arched away from her mother, who wished to plant a kiss on the face of her daughter. Malaika, 16, believed she’s all grown up — she was not going to face the horrible embarrassment of getting treated like a baby by her mother Amanpreet in public.

Perhaps Malaika, the schoolgirl from Ludhiana, had every right to believe she’d come of age — she’d just won India their first medal in shooting, a silver.

Malaika has been shooting for six years, she studies economics at Alpine School, and she’s the baby of the shooting team.

Malaika, ranked No.15 in the world, had a total of 197.1 points. The gold was won by Singapore’s Shun Xie Teo (198.6 points). Hot favourite Heena Sidhu, her rhythm upset due to the fact that the final started a little earlier than scheduled, had to end up with the disappointment of seventh position out of the eight finalists.

With five shots to be fired (out of a maximum of 20), Malaika led the field and seemed set for gold. However, perhaps too excited, she could not keep up – her final five scores of 9.7, 9.5, 10.1, 9.2 and 9.2 allowed the field to catch up and Shun Xie to pip her for gold.

“I’m still shaking,” Malaika says later, as she proudly displays her silver. Pressure does that to the best in the world, Malaika will play on, learn and grow stronger. “I was shaking all over since yesterday. I was nervous,” the schoolgirl added. In a way, Abhinav Bindra has contributed to her success. The daughter of a police officer, Malaika took up shooting in 2008, the year Bindra won India’s first individual gold medal at the Olympic Games.

“My parents were keen about me becoming a shooter,” she says. She comes from a secure background, evidently, and can afford to “neglect” her studies.

“I’m not too keen about studies!” she declares, adding that she cannot find the time to study regularly because she needs to constantly train to improve as a shooter. Her mother, still by her side, smiles indulgently.

Malaika had qualified for the final with the fourth best score. That did bother her a bit, though not too much, it’s clear.

Has she beaten Heena Sidhu before in competition? “I have beaten her once, I was confident of doing well here too. I did not even check my score sheet,” she says.

Malaika’s parents were in Cournoustie – the shooting venue about 82 miles away from Glasgow – to be present at their daughter’s moment of triumph.

“Since her father is in police, she knew about shooting at a very old age,” Amanpreet said. “Then she went for shooting, with our encouragement, and her coach (Gaganjit Singh) told us she had the potential to be a good shooter. That prompted us to put her into shooting.”

Shakers can’t be the best shooters, Malaika knows. She was nervous today, her arm a bit shaky. She shot silver, but it’s clear that for this 16-year-old, the future is bright, triumphant and secure.

Glasgow, July 25
Weightlifter Sukhen Dey knows a thing or two about disappointment.

Four years ago in Delhi, the 56kg category weight category lifter, won the silver medal. Not bad at all, but it sowed seeds of disappointment in his mind. He had a ‘no lift’ in his final attempt then, and that ensured that he finished with a silver at New Delhi.

This time around, when he had a ‘no lift’ in his first attempt at ‘Clean and jerk’, his mind went back to Delhi. He didn’t want to slip up again.

The last time around at Delhi, he’d missed a 146kg lift.

He went for safety and victory here. His final lift was 139kg in Clean and Jerk. Added to the 109kg he lifted in Snatch, the total he lifted went up to 248kg, which was good enough for gold. Another Indian, Ganaesh Mali, had a total of 244kg (111+133), which got him the silver.

It was India’s day in this weight category; Mali led the field with a best lift of 111kg in the Snatch category. However, the best he could do in Clean and jerk was 133, and that put him behind the silver winner.

Later, Deu, who comes from Andul in Howrah district of West Bengal, said that the failure of 2010 worried him a bit. “When I missed in my first attempt in Clean and Jerk, the failure to win gold in New Delhi came to my mind,” he said. Dey, thus, didn’t try to glory for his further attempts — he didn’t go for the Commonwealth Games record and opted for a lift that ensured him the gold.

“I wanted to play it safe and make sure that I won gold, the Commonwealth Games record can wait,” he added.

Dey had won a gold at the 2013 Commonwealth Championships in November last year. There was some dope problem in the past, when he was suspended in 2011 for failing a dope test during the Continental Grand Prix in Malaysia.

Dey is a Havaldar rank in the armed forces and has trained at Pune Army Sports Institute.

Glasgow, July 25
The Indian men's hockey team Friday began their Commonwealth Games campaign with a facile 3-1 win over lowly Wales in a Pool A tie at the Glasgow National Hockey Centre here.

In what was a lazy and lacklustre beginning, World No.9 India at half-time were held to a 1-1 scoreline by Wales, who are ranked 22 places below. But a much better second half performance that saw two goals being scored put India through.

V.R. Raghunath opened the scoring for India from a penalty corner in the 20th minute. But his opener was cancelled out just three minutes later by a stinging shot from Andrew Cornick.

It was another penalty corner post-break that gave India the lead for the second time in the match. Rupinder Pal Singh was at hand in 42nd minute to turn the ball into the back of the net.

Gurwinder Singh Chandi put the match beyond Wales in the 47th minute from India's first open-play goal in the match.

"Our aim was to score more goals against Wales as per our strategy but some small mistakes didn't allow us to achieve it. Whatever shortcomings we have seen will be rectified and not repeated against Scotland," India chief coach Terry Walsh said.

picture perfect: Pantelitsa Theodoulou of Cyprus competes in the Individual All-Round Final of the Rhythmic Gymnastics event. afp

The Indian men's hockey team Friday began their Commonwealth Games campaign with a facile 3-1 win over lowly Wales in a Pool A tie at the Glasgow National Hockey Centre here. In what was a lazy and lacklustre beginning, World No.9 India at half-time were held to a 1-1 scoreline by Wales, who are ranked 22 places below. But a much better second half performance that saw two goals being scored put India through. V.R. Raghunath opened the scoring for India from a penalty corner in the 20th minute. But his opener was cancelled out just three minutes later by a stinging shot from Andrew Cornick. It was another penalty corner post-break that gave India the lead for the second time in the match. Rupinder Pal Singh was at hand in 42nd minute to turn the ball into the back of the net. Gurwinder Singh Chandi put the match beyond Wales in the 47th minute from India's first open-play goal in the match.. 

+Indian men's and women's table tennis teams notched up wins in their respective pool matches of the 20th Commonwealth Games being held at the Scotstoun Sports Campus here Friday. While the men defeated Guyana 3-0 in Pool C, the women thrashed Kenya with the same scoreline in Pool D. | Boxing: Parveen Kumar lost to Ross Henderson of Scotland in the men’s +91 kg category while Mandeep Jangra beat Augusto Mathule of Mozambique in the men’s 69kg category to sail into the next round. | Swimming: Sandeep Sejwal qualifies for men's 100m breaststroke. He becomes the first Indian swimmer to do that. Sejwal finished 12th overall in the heats. | Lawn bowl: India beat Fiji 15-11 in Men's pair after making a sensational comeback in the match.

Chandigarh, July 25
It’s not everyday you see top-level athletes declaring that they were participating in a particular competition for the last time on the eve of the competition. But Abhinav Bindra, India’s first individual Olympic gold medallist, is different . A day before his fifth appearance in the Commonwealth Games, Bindra declared that it was his last appearance in the Games.

Next day the ace marksman shot down a gold medal and walked away in his own subdued but inimitable style. The decision to quit could not have been a knee-jerk reaction but if his father AS Bindra is to be believed, Abhinav had no such thing in his mind before leaving for Glasgow. “I think Abhinav decided about it there only; he didn’t discuss it with us when he was home. We are not sure if he has decided to quit other competitions as well. Anyway, we are happy with whatever he has decided. After competing for 20 years and winning medals in virtually every competition, he would like to settle down and relax a bit,” he said.

“Abhinav has once again proved his mettle. I am proud that Abhinav announced his decision a day before the event and not after winning the medal. It shows what he is made of,” said the proud father.

Asked what the shooter's future course of action would be, the senior Bindra said, “He will settle down, get married and move on in life. He has been an active sportman for 20 years now; I think he would like explore other things in life too.”

Trust Abhinav never to let out what is in his heart but his family, at times, has been the only source of information that trickles down about the champion athlete.

And this little sneek peek into the future life of the shooter is more than enough to know what holds in store for the most eligible bachelor of the country.

Southampton, July 25
The BCCI and its parent body ICC seemed headed for a showdown after Indian all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja was on Friday fined 50% of his match fee for the altercation with England pacer James Anderson, a sentence which a livid Indian Board intends to challenge.

Jadeja was docked 50% of his match fee by match referee David Boon for the on-field incident with

Anderson but the player was not found guilty for the original level 2 offence charged by the England team management. Soon after the ICC announcement, a miffed BCCI made it clear that it was not satisfied with the verdict and said it reserved its right to appeal against the sentence. The BCCI said it was fully behind Jadeja after Boon found the player guilty of 'conduct contrary to the spirit of the game'.

“The BCCI has taken note of the ICC Match Referee's decision to find Ravindra Jadeja guilty of a Level 1 'Breach of Conduct' for his involvement in an incident on the second day of the Nottingham Test of the ongoing series between India and England,” the BCCI said.

“The BCCI wishes to make it clear that it is not satisfied with the verdict. The BCCI reserves its right to appeal against the sentence. The BCCI believes that Mr Ravindra Jadeja was not at fault, and supports him fully," it added.

The incident occurred during the lunch break of the second day's play at Nottingham during which, the Indians claim that Anderson had allegedly “abused” and “pushed” Jadeja as the players were making their way into the dressing rooms. The England team management, which had initially described it as a “minor” incident, later filed a counter-charge against Jadeja. Boon held a hearing on Thursday which was attended by both the players, their legal counsels, witnesses as well as BCCI representatives. — PTI

Chandigarh, July 25
Senior Vice President of the Basket Federation of India (BFI) K Govindraj reportedly discussed the incident, wherein two Sikh basketball players were not allowed to wear under turbans at a tournament in China, at the general council meeting of FIBA (International Basketball Federation), Asia, held in Doha last evening.

Amritpal Singh of Ludhiana district and Amjyot Singh of Chandigarh were not allowed to wear ‘patka’ at the Asia Cup in Wuhan in China early this month.

Amjyot is a B.Com graduate and works for the Indian Oversees Bank in Tamil Nadu and Amritpal works for the ONGC. Amjyot was the top scorer of the Indian team in China, where India defeated the hosts. He scored 13 points against China, 30 against Singapore, 16 against Indonesia, 17 against Iran.

The team in China was fielded by Scott Flemming, Head Coach of the India team. Since Flemming being an American could not convince the technical committee, when the matter was raised at the tournament earlier this month.

The players had already warmed up for the match and entered the court when the objection was raised regarding the Sikh players. Sources said the two were targeted as they were the best players of the Indian team. A senior BFI official said the team management should have contacted the BFI to seek guidance on the issue.

A senior official of the BFI said that FIBA (Asia) had expressed concern over the issue. Sources said FIBA (Asia) referred the issue to FIBA. Moreover, the BFI would also raise this issue at FIBA's general council on August 28, 29 in Spain. 

Navjot Chana reacts during the fight with England’s Ashley Mckenzie on Thursday. PTI

Hoshiarpur, July 25
Judoka Navjot Chana's silver winning feat at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow is a heartening development for his family and coach but the Hoshairpur-based family was expecting nothing short of gold medal, given Chana's past record and his single-minded determination.

It was a serious ligament injury and left arm's muscle injury during a training session that forced doctors to advise him to go for a corrective surgery but the feisty athlete stuck to his goal and was adamant on performing in Glasgow. The surgery could wait till the competition was over, he believed. “He's like that from the very beginning, whenever there's any championship he forgets everything,” said father Pal Chand.

Mother Balbir Kaur and sister Sajida Chand, an NIS qualified judo coach, were happy for his success but were a bit dejected for Navjot not winning the gold. “He had already defeated most of the players in earlier competitions. So we were expecting a gold, said mother Balbir Kaur.

Navjot has been three times winner in Commonwealth Judo Championship (2004, 2008 and 2010). Chana had won silver in Junior Asian Championship in 2002. He had won 17 gold medals in National Games and other championships in between 2001 to 2011. He won gold twice in South Asian Games (2006, 2014). Coach Surinder Singh Sodhi said Navjot took up the game at the age of 9.

However, it is sad that Navjot's success has not been appropriately rewarded till now. "In 2000, when he won the national championship, all the forces wanted him to recruit him but he joined Punjab Police as a constable. He was promised promotions based on points earned as per the police's policy. Yet those promises were not fulfilled,” said Pal Chand.