Less than 48 hours ago, India's veteran rower Dattu Bhokanal, 27, was almost a villain. Firstly, he had forgotten to lock his oar gate before the start of his single sculls race due to which his boat capsized. Then, he gave up mid-way through the race citing a tired body, leaving coach Ismail Baig furious.

However, yesterday, Bhokanal was the hero as he along with Sawarn Singh, Om Prakash and Sukhmeet Singh clocked 6:17:13 to win gold in the men's quadruple sculls event in Palembang.