Dingko Singh, who till two hours before he boarded the Bangkok flight had no idea whether he would make his Asian Games debut; Jyotirmoyee Sikdar, who only wanted a medal - she got two gold - and Geet Sethi, who admits to having got tense when India were 1-3 down in the billiards doubles, gave India its finest evening of the fortnight. Add to this India's entry into the final of the men's hockey competition with a brilliant display against Japan.

Suddenly, the Indian Asian Games campaign is beginning to look worthwhile, even after the Indian Olympic Association, the Sports Ministry and many federations contrived to send passengers and tourists in many of the disciplines.

Today, there was no hint of bitterness on Dingko's face. Not a word about his being dropped from the team, nothing about themental torture he went through before being put back onto the squad. ``Let's just forget it all and let me enjoy this moment. I have accomplished one half of my dream and the other half can now be fulfilled in Sydney in 2000,'' said the 20-year-old Dingko who obviously loves the Thai capital. It was in Bangkok, that he first struck big time by winning the Kings Cup gold in 1997.

``I knew all along that I could win the gold. I now have people who believe me,'' he added as the impact of his feat sunk in. He became only the fourth Indian in the history of Asian Games to strike a boxing gold. Padam Bahadur Mall in 1962, Hawa Singh in 1974 and 1978 and Kaur Singh in 1982 won gold medals before Dingko. But none could have faced as tough a childhood as Dingko who lost his father while still young. ``I don't remember him,'' the Manipur lads said simply, and then added that he was never really afraid of his rival today Uzbekistan's Timur Tulyakov, the Goodwill Games champion and World No 2.

So superior was Dingkoin the 54-kg final that the referee had to stopped the contest after four rounds. The battered Tulyakov's right fist was injured and he threw in the towel when he realised the fight was over with Dingko on the rampage. In a country which hardly forgives fighters who beat their favourite boxers, Dingko was still very much a favourite with the crowd and the bettors. The locals were somewhat subdued when he came onto the scene, but as the fight progressed, they warmed up to him.

``I knew I was going to win after two rounds. My coach said I was tired and should slow down but I still had a lot of stamina rounds left in me,'' said an ecstatic Dingko.

If Dingko knew all along he could win, Jyotirmoyee's coaches had to drill into her mind that no one - not even the Chinese - could beat her in the 800m after her great run in the 1,500 m. ``My coach (Hargobind Singh) kept saying I was going to win, but I feel that if I say it might not happen, so I just wanted to get on to the track and run and do my best. Noweverybody is saying that we must win the 4x400m relay,'' said Jyotirmoyee, a Railways employee, married to a former 800m runner, Avtar Singh.

As for Geet Sethi, he says he is too seasoned to be nervous while playing big tournaments. But playing individual tournaments and playing for the country are two different things, he concedes. A sure bet for the singles and doubles gold in billiards, he was under pressure as India trailed 1-3 in the best of nine frames doubles final. With Ashok Shandilya, who is seeded to meet him in the singles final, partnering him Sethi roared back in great fashion to carve out a 5-4 win and disappoint the Thai fans yet again.

If Dingko dashed their hopes in boxing semis, Sethi and Shandilya had snatched away the doubles billiards gold when it seemed it was all over bar the shouting.