Commonwealth Games 2022: 1st medal for India! Lifter Sanket Sargar bags silver in Birmingham CWG

India's Sanket Sargar opened the country's medal tally at the Commonwealth Games by claiming a silver medal in the men's 55kg category here on Saturday.

The 21-year-old looked on course to win the gold but two failed clean and jerk attempts spoiled his chances as he lifted a total of 248kg (113kg+135kg) to finish second.

Sanket Sargar wins first silver medal for India in men's 55kg Weightlifting at #CommonwealthGames2022 in Birmingham.
Congratulations #SanketSargar !#CWG2022 #CommonwealthGames pic.twitter.com/coUjuqL2CI

— Kiren Rijiju (@KirenRijiju) July 30, 2022

Malaysia's Mohamad Aniq (249kg) smashed the Games record in clean and jerk as he lifted 249kg (107kg+142kg) to win the gold, while Sri Lanka's Dilanka Isuru Kumara 225kg (105kg+120kg) took home the bronze.

Exceptional effort by Sanket Sargar! His bagging the prestigious Silver is a great start for India at the Commonwealth Games. Congratulations to him and best wishes for all future endeavours. pic.twitter.com/Pvjjaj0IGm

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) July 30, 2022

Sargar cruised past all his opponents in the snatch section, leading by six kilograms to head into clean and jerk.

But the Indian was only able to execute one lift in the clean and jerk section as he seemingly picked up an injury and looked in agony after he failed to lift 139kg in his second and third attempts.

In the last edition, Indian lifters brought home a rich haul of nine medals including five golds. This year too they are expected to reign supreme.

Later in the day, P Gururaja (61kg), Olympic silver medallist Mirabai Chanu (49kg) and S Bindyarani Devi (55kg) will vie for the top honors in their respective events.