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What's the story?
The Commonwealth Games are all set for their new edition this April and India is gearing up to send some of its exceptionally talented athletes to the fore. With Dipa Karmakar being forced to rule herself out of the tournament, owing to a serious knee injury, the hopes of the event's gymnastics category are now bestowed upon the younger upcoming gymnasts of the country.
The good news is that Kolkata's gymnasts Pranati Nayak and Pranati Das have restored the country's hopes by qualifying for their participation in the Commonwealth Games.
In case you didn't know...
The Commonwealth Games officially called the XXI Commonwealth Games are scheduled to take place between the 4th to 15th of April 2018. The event will take place on the Gold Coast, Queensland in Australia, thus, also going by the title Gold Coast 2018.
The heart of the matter
A tweet confirming the news of the qualification of the two young girls from Kolkata was a relief for the Indian gymnasts after Karmakar's exit.
Pranati Nayak, all of 23, hails from the Midnapur district of Kolkata and has taken part in the 2014 and 2017 World Championships in Montreal and Nanning respectively. She cinched the first spot so as to confirm her place in the upcoming Commonwealth Games.
The second gymnast to clinch her place in the Games was Pranati Das. Hailing from Kolkata's Jaynagar, she finished second to join Nayak in April. She took has participation at the World Championships in 2014 and 17 to her accolades.
What's next?
The Commonwealth Games will start on the 4th of April 2017, and it is yet to be seen how these youngsters perform at the grand event. When interviewed, Dipa Karmakar's coach Bisweshwar Nandi claimed that he had his hopes in Pranati Das to clinch a medal.
Author's take
India has an abundance of talent when it comes to sports and here's hoping that the city of joy has more reason to rejoice once the Commonwealth Games take off.
