Wrestlers look to make a mark

Gaurav Kanthwal

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, August 14

India can kick off their Asian Games campaign with a gold medal on the very first day if Bajrang Punia shows the form he has shown earlier this year. The 65kg category wrestler from Jhajjar hit a purple patch with the gold in the Tbilisi Grand Prix in Georgia in July this year. In April, the 24-year-old won the gold in the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games. He also won the gold in the Yasar Dogu International meet in Istanbul in late July. The 2014 Incheon Asian Games silver medallist (in 61kg) won the bronze in the Asian Championships in Bishkek in March 2018. 

The recent gold rush indicates that Bajrang is in top form but it is the change in his mental approach that has transformed him into a winner. Bajrang, after rubbing shoulders with international medallists during his training stints in Georgia and Turkey this year, has realised the significance of making the right move at the right time for maximum effect. “We don’t train for any particular opponent because you don’t know who your opponent would be. But you have to be strong mentally to tackle every situation,” he said recently. 

Anything less than the gold would be a disappointment for Indian fans on the very first day.

Last chance?

Sushil Kumar, the double Olympics medallist, is yet to win a gold in the Asian Games. The Baprola wrestler won the 66kg category bronze in the Doha Asian Games in 2006 but has given a miss to the subsequent two editions. In the last phase of his career, the 35-year-old has been training in Georgia, away from the national camp, but is reportedly not in prime form. Sushil’s 4-8 loss to an unheralded Polish wrestler, Andrzej Piotr Sokalski, in the 74 kg category has set the warning bells ringing. Sushil will need to summon all his experience and willpower to prove his critics wrong.

Sandeep Tomar, the last Indian to book a berth for the Asian Games by winning the re-scheduled trials, is also expected to do well. Whether the 57kg category wrestler wins a medal or not will depend on his performance on the given day. 

Brightest medal hope

The only one of the Dangal quintet to qualify for the Asian Games, Vinesh Phogat is India’s brightest medal hope in women’s wrestling. The 50kg category wrestler has been in good form and won the gold in the Spanish Grand Prix last month after the gold in the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games. The Incheon Asian Games bronze medallist has attended a training camp in Hungary under coach Woller Akos and is excited to upgrade her medal this time. “The competitors will be quite strong, given that there will be a number of Olympics medallists among the contenders. So my focus will be on giving my best in every single match,” the 23-year-old said.

Sakshi Malik, the Rio Olympics bronze medallist, is going through patchy form. In fact, she has not won the gold medal in an international tournament of repute. The 58kg category wrestler had to be content with the bronze medal in the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games, where the level of competition is notably lower than at the Asian Games. The 25-year-old Rohtak wrestler will be competing in the 62 kg category.