Indian Open: Sarvesh Anil Kushare battles back to bag men’s high jump gold

BENGALURU: The battle between India’s top two high jumpers, national champion Sarvesh Anil Kushare and national record holder Tejaswin Shankar, was the highlight of the Indian Open athletics meet held here on Saturday. In an intense clash at the Sree Kanteerava stadium, Shankar took the pole position as he cleared 2.19m on his first attempt. Kushare managed to clear the same height only on his second attempt. But the Paris Olympian snatched back the lead in quick time, clearing 2.21m on his first attempt. Shankar, who now focuses on Decathlon — where he is in contention to qualify for the Tokyo World Championships, tried to continue the fight as he got ready to clear 2.21. But in the end, he was forced to pull out with a nagging pain as he stopped mid-way through his run up during his first attempt. “It was a good competition, especially with Tejaswin pushing me. But in the end he had to drop out as he felt some pain during his run-up. I’m happy with my performance but If I compete in more competitions against top athletes I can do better,” Kusare, a Subedar with the Indian Army, told TOI.