Of the four Indian wrestlers on the mat on the opening day, only Aman Sehrawat survived the first few rounds.
Only Aman Sehrawat advanced to the semi-finals and second half of the opening day of the Asian Wrestling Olympic Qualifiers in Bishek, Kyrgyzstan.
The day started worryingly with Deepak Punia (86 kg category) and Sujeet Kalakal (65 kg category) absent for showing up late for the weigh-ins. The duo were stuck at Dubai airport due to flight delays caused by incessant rain. The two wrestlers, coach Kamal Malikov and physio Shubham Gupta having been unable to travel since Tuesday, they did not show up on time for the obligatory weigh-ins. The duo can still book places for the Paris Olympics at the world qualifying tournament in Turkey in May.
On Friday, four Indian wrestlers were in the fray: Aman Sehrawat (men’s 57 kg), Jaideep (men’s 74 kg), Deepak (men’s 97 kg) and Sumit Malik (men’s 125 kg). And only one of them, Aman, survived the first rounds to advance to the semi-finals.
He will face defending champion Gulomjon Abdullaev of Uzbekistan for a quota spot at the Paris Olympics.
2023 Asian champion and Asian Games bronze medalist Aman Sehrawat made short work of Yerassyl Mukhtaruly with a 10-0 victory in his opening match in the 57kg category.
He then secured a place in the semi-finals with an 11-1 victory over Korea’s Sunggwon Kim. Having started slowly, Aman shifted gears and got the job done in the second half.
Jaideep started the competition well, surviving Alp Begenjov’s arm throw for four points before coming back strong with a pin 30 seconds before the break to advance in the 74kg category.
In the quarterfinals, Kyrgyzstan’s Orozobek Toktomabetov gave up a takedown, then scored one of his own in the decisive move. With the scores tied at 2-2, the local wrestler won by the final point criterion.
In the 97kg category, Deepak was swept aside by Japan’s Arash Yoshida by a margin of 10-0.
Lkhagvagerel Munkhtur of Mongolia ended Sumit’s hopes in the 125kg category with a leg tie.
