India’s Vinesh Phogat, Pooja Dhanda and Sakshi Malik ensured a medal each after registering comprehensive wins to advance to the semi-finals of their respective weight categories in women’s freestyle wrestling at the 2018 Asian Games here on Monday.
Vinesh registered a comfortable 11-0 victory over South Korea’s Kim Hyungjoo in the 50 kilogram event in the quarter-finals, before Pooja booked her berth in the semi-finals after thrashing Esenbaeva Nabira of Uzbekistan 12-1 in the 57kg category.
Rio Olympics bronze medallist Sakshi then entered the last four after thrashing Kazakhstan’s Ayaulym Kassymova by technical superiority (10-0).
Vinesh had earlier defeated China’s Sun Yanan by technical superiority 8-2 in the 50kg 1/8 finals while Sakshi needed less than two minutes to emerge victorious over Thailand’s Salinee Srisombat 10-0 in the 62kg 1/8 finals.
Pooja came to the semi-finals on the back of a dominant 10-0 thrashing of Thailand’s Orasa Sookdongyor in the 57kg 1/8 finals.
Meanwhile, it was heartbreak for the other Indian wrestlers — Pinki and Sumit Malik — who lost their respective 1/8 finals.
In women’s 53kg, Pinki was thrashed by technical superiority (0-10) by Mongolian Sumiya Erdenechimeg while in the men’s 125kg 1/8 finals, Sumit suffered a similar fate (0-10) against Parviz Hadibasmanj of Iran.
