NEW DELHI: A few wrestlers with their families and coaches had already reached Gate 18 of the Indira Gandhi Stadium in New Delhi by 6AM on Saturday but the security guards sprung into action the moment Vinesh Phogat's SUV halted there around 20 minutes later. As they did to other wrestlers, the security personnel didn't open the gate for the vehicle causing Vinesh and her husband Somvir Rathi to get down and walked a few steps towards guards.
Soon the situation escalated with Vinesh and Rathi seeming to be arguing with gatekeepers. Even as they were allowed in a few minutes later, the early morning verbal exchange set the tone of the remaining day for the 31-year-old Haryana wrestler. Above 125 wrestlers were part of the selection trials held at the venue to pick the women's team for the 2026 Asian Games but undoubtedly the competition gained greater prominence because of Vinesh. And she remained the centre of attraction no matter where she was — on the mat or off the mat.
After entering the competition premises, Vinesh had to see off a strong reservation from the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) against the weight category she wanted to compete in. "I was handed a letter in the morning that I have to compete in the 50kg weight category. I had to fight for an hour to change it to 53kg," she told journalists after losing the semifinal bout.
But the fight had only begun for Vinesh as she waited patiently on the sidelines for her bouts which started only after a couple of hours. With 17 wrestlers in the 53kg weight category, 15 wrestlers including Vinesh were given a bye each in the first round while two of them fought the qualification bout to make it to the main round.
Vinesh's first bout was against Jyoti which she won by points (7-1). The scoreline flattered her as unheralded Jyoti stretched Vinesh to full six minutes (a period of three minutes each) but it was the next round that gave Vinesh the real scare. Up against Nishu, the U23 2025 World Championships bronze medallist, Vinesh survived a near pinfall even as the move earned four points to her opponent. Fortunately for her, the first period came to an end giving Vinesh a breather and a chance to regroup. Vinesh then effected a four-pointer before a take down to edge ahead 6-5.
She, however, lost a challenge and conceded a point to tie the score at 6-6. Both the wrestlers were not ready to give an inch to each other but Nishu lost an appeal at the final hooter conceding a point and thus losing the bout 6-7. The six-minute bout continued for more than 20 minutes with both sides throwing challenges. It also witnessed Vinesh's husband Rathi, who was serving as her coach, coming out on the mat protesting decisions made by the referee. Such was commotion that the WFI authorities even deployed police personnel near the mat for Vinesh's next round of bout.
With this being her first competitive bout in almost two years and after a maternity break, the high-intensity clash against Nishu apparently sapped Vinesh's energy. The same was visible at the start of the semifinal against Meenakhshi, who last month won a silver medal in the same weight category at the Asian Championships.
To begin with, Vinesh conceded a point for passivity and then her opponent earned a couple more by pushing her out. Meenakshi then raced to 4-1 lead but Vinesh made a comeback by a two-pointer take down in the next period. Meenakshi responded with a two-pointer to take the lead to 6-3. In the dying seconds, Vinesh made a challenge but it didn't bring desired results as she ended up conceding one more point, losing 6-4 to Meenakshi.
Later, Vinesh accused the federation of grouping her with strong opponents so that she would get exhausted by the end of the day. "It was not fair play but I accept my defeat. I vow to work hard and come back stronger," she said.
Vinesh also said that had she got to play at the Senior Open Ranking Tournament, she would have assessed herself better. "I am taking a lot of positives from this tournament. However, I am pained to see that none from the Sports Authority of India, sports ministry and Indian Olympic Association are not taking a stand against the biased attitude of the WFI. The government brags a lot about bringing the 2030 Commonwealth Games to the country and bidding for the 2036 Olympics but athletes in the country are surviving like this. I am sorry but you don't deserve such big events."
As it started, the day ended on a sad note for Vinesh but she has seen enough ups and downs in her sporting life to give up that easily. Expect a better comeback from her the next time she takes the mat.
Women squad for Asian Games: Dipanshee (50kg), Antim Panghal (53kg) Manisha (57kg), Mansi Ahlawat (62kg), Nisha Dahiya (68kg), Priya (76kg)