Rio Olympics for India: Triumph of the underdogs

How many of you were aware of Sakshi Malik till she got India a bronze in the Rio Olympics? One bets, the majority would answer in the negative and the minority would answer in the affirmative.

Pusarla Venkata Sindhu (21) has long been over shadowed by Saina Nehwal also from Hyderabad. But the irony is that Sindhu has already given India the biggest glory at the Olympics in badminton before she faces the Spaniard Carolina Marin in the race to the gold.

Even if Sindhu concedes defeat to Marin, she will have walked the path to history for being the most successful woman badminton player for India at the Olympics. Sindhu is already part of history for being the first Indian woman to win a sliver medal at least (even if she loses in the finals).

There's one common thread between the Rohtak girl Malik and Hyderabad born Sindhu. Before the start of the Olympics, nobody thought that these two ladies would uphold the prestige of the country at a time when the biggies had disappointed. Sakshi was not even the first priority to take the flight to Rio.

Time to recall: As the Indian contingent prepared to leave for Rio, the media went ga-ga over the likes of Leander Paes, Sania Mirza, Saina Nehwal, Dipa Karmakar, Abhinav Bindra and the men's hockey side to win medals for us.

Fast forward and none of the above-mentioned stars figures in the list of medal-holders. It's the underdogs or the neglected ones who have brought glory to the country ignoring the indifferent treatment meted out to them.

That's India for your kind information. We worship people who do us proud and in the process turn our backs on the rest. Little do we realise that representing the country on the Olympic platform requires a lot of gumption.

The Rio Olympics for India should go down in history as the one that had the underdogs romping home when the megastars failed to make it. As proud Indians, let's pray that Sindhu bags a gold today. Even if she doesn't, she has made a mark and proved a point- perseverance pays off even if you are less glamorous.

All the best Sindhu!