BIRMINGHAM: "I have to win a medal now. I don't have an option." That was Tejaswin Shankar last Saturday while getting off the Delhi-Dubai-Birmingham flight and heading to the athletes' village. The words seemed rushed but carried a quiet conviction.
On Wednesday, barely a heartbeat later, there was a joyous vibe to the 23-year-old. Under darkening skies at the Alexander Stadium, he was huddling in celebration with New Zealander Hamish Kerr and Brandon Starc, the gangling Oz cricketer Mitchell's much-smaller younger brother. The Indian had cleared 2. 22m - the leap that got him a bronze medal. It was a telling statement to all the naysayers and officious detractors in Indian sport's administrative offices.
