Indian wrestlers in golden sweep at South Asian Games

There was no stopping the Indian wrestlers at the 2019 South Asian Games as they swept home the four gold medals on offer in the competition on Sunday. The results mean India has extended their lead on the medals tally with 132 gold, 79 silver and 41 bronze medals.

Leading the charge on Sunday was the Rio Olympics bronze medallist Sakshi Malik as she barely broke a sweat en route her triumph in the 62kg category. The 27-year-old Indian beat Mahira of Sri Lanka in the final.

Joining the 27-year-old with a gold medal around his neck was Ravinder, who showed great composure to win the top prize in the 61kg freestyle category. 

Though Ravinder, the silver medallist at the U-23 World Wrestling Championships, enjoyed an easy path to the final, in the gold-medal bout, the Indian had to be at his best to see off a stiff challenge from Pakistan’s M Bilal.The other champions of the day were Pawan Kumar in the men’s 86kg freestyle category and Anshu in the women’s 59kg category. While Pawan, the bronze medallist at the 2014 Commonwealth Games, had to strive hard for his win in the final, Anshu recorded a surprising 15-second win over her opponent in the final.

Having won all the gold medals on offer so far at the 2019 South Asian Games, the Indian wrestlers will be eager to wrap up the show with a clean sweep on the final day of the competition. Monday will see Gaurav Baliyan (74kg) and Anita Sheoran (68kg) take the mat for their respective bouts in Kathmandu.

Tennis delight at South Asian Games

India’s success at the 2019 South Asian Games on Sunday was not restricted to wrestling alone as tennis and fencing too added to the nation’s medal tally on Sunday. 

On the tennis courts, in what an all-Indian finals day in the doubles segment, Davis Cupper Saketh Myneni and Vishnu Vardhan walked away with gold medals after some hard-fought tennis in the men’s doubles.

The Myneni-Vardhan duo beat compatriots Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan and Sriram Balaji 7-5, 3-6, 10-5 for the gold medal.

In the women’s doubles, Prerna Bhambri and Prarthana Thombare recorded a straight-sets win over fellow Indians Sravya Nagpal and Bhuvana Kalva for the yellow metal. They won the final 6-3, 6-3. Meanwhile, in the mixed doubles, Balaji and Sowjanya Bavisetti defeated Nedunchezhiyan and Thombare 6-3, 6-7, 10-7.