Action is heating up at the ongoing Asian Games at Incheon (S Korea), as the Games enter the second phase with the eighth day today. It is tepid going for India, which had slipped to 13th place in the medal rankings at the time of writing this. Indian men’s squash player, Saurav Ghosal let slip a winning lead to settle for silver, to the agony of Indian squash fans. Of course, the fact that Saurav reached the final is creditable, but he must now think deep about having let go the best possible chance for a gold and allowing his Qatari opponent to turn the tables in such a shocking fashion.

After the euphoria of the Glasgow Commonwealth Games, the Asian Games comes as a reality check and a wake-up call for athletes and sports followers across the country. Of course, those who are keen followers will know that standards in the Commonwealth Games are much lower than those at the Asian Games. The Asian Games is really the true test before the Rio Olympics takes place in 2016.