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Commonwealth Games: WA’s Maddison Keeney wins third medal as Australia open final day with dual silver

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Aaron KirbyThe West Australian
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Australia's Shixin Li and Maddison Keeney won silver in the Mixed Synchronised 3m Springboard Final.
Camera IconAustralia's Shixin Li and Maddison Keeney won silver in the Mixed Synchronised 3m Springboard Final. Credit: David Davies/AP

Australia’s medal grab has continued on the final day of the Commonwealth Games with dual silver medals in diving and table tennis.

As the Birmingham Games entered its swansong, WA’s Maddison Keeney and partner Shixin Li hit the 3m Springboard for the Mixed Synchronised Diving Final, with Keeney looking to score her third gold of the Games.

The 26-year-old was in tears after winning the gold medal in the Women’s Synchronised 3m Springboard Diving Final on Saturday but looked calm and relaxed as she stepped up for her first dive of the night.

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And it translated into points with their Inward Dive putting them into the lead from the bell, scoring a 50.40, closely followed by Scottish pair James Heatly and Grace Reid.

The Scotts dogged the Aussie combination all day but found themselves sitting equal third with one dive to come as Keeney and Li led the pack.

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Australia's Shixin Li and Maddison Keeney perform during the Mixed Synchronised 3m Springboard final diving competition at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, England, Monday, Aug. 8, 2022.
Camera IconAustralia's Shixin Li and Maddison Keeney perform during the Mixed Synchronised 3m Springboard final diving competition at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, England, Monday, Aug. 8, 2022. Credit: Kirsty Wigglesworth/AP

But a breath-taking display of grace and discipline saw them nail the score of the night, awarded 74.40 from the judges to streak into the gold medal position with Australia still to dive one more time.

The Aussies looked confident as they lined up for the final time and produced a near-perfect Forward 2½ Somersaults 1 Twist, but the judges left them agonisingly short of the gold medal with a score of 67.50, just 1.98 points behind Scotland.

Table tennis ironwoman Lay Jian Fang has added another medal to her tally, settling for silver alongside partner Jee Minhyung in the Women’s Doubles.

Minhyung Jee, right, serves as partner Jian Fang Lay, of Australia watches during their match against Feng Tianwei and Zeng Jian of Singapore in the women's table tennis doubles gold medal match at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, England, Monday, Aug. 8, 2022.
Camera IconMinhyung Jee, right, serves as partner Jian Fang Lay, of Australia watches during their match against Feng Tianwei and Zeng Jian of Singapore in the women's table tennis doubles gold medal match at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, England, Monday, Aug. 8, 2022. Credit: Rui Vieira/AP

The duo were thoroughly outclassed by Feng Tianwei and Zeng Jian of Singapore in the first game, smashed 11-1.

But they came out firing in the second, streaking into the lead.

The professionalism of the Singapore stars kept the Aussies in check until their hot streak returned, taking game two 11-8.

Lay and Jee continued to battle manfully but could not halt the Singapore pair as they laid their claim on the gold medal, taking the third game 11-8 again to record a straight games triumph.

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