CHENNAI: The Selection trials for picking the national women’s wrestling team witnessed a couple of upsets with heavyweights like Sakshi Malik and Pooja Dhanda being knocked out by teenagers in the first round. Two-time World Cadet champion Sonam Malik shocked Rio Olympic bronze medallist Sakshi Malik while Anshu Malik stunned 2018 World Championship bronze medallist Pooja Dhanda. The trials in Lucknow were held in six Olympic weight categories to select the team for three international events including the Tokyo Games qualifier scheduled in March.
“Last year, Anshu lost to Pooja (Dhanda) on technicalities despite scoring equal points during the World Championship qualifier. She avenged the loss by winning in the first round this time,” Dharamvir Malik, Anshu’s father, told this daily.
Hailing from a family of wrestlers, the 17-year-old from Haryana is being coached by Jagdeesh. “We (me and my elder brother Pawan) trained her in the beginning before Jagdeesh and Dilip Singh Malik took her under their wings. Pratap Sports School and Omprakash Dahiya also helped us a lot. She had won medals at the Cadet and junior level and this win presents her a great opportunity to graduate to senior level,” the father added.
Anshu beat Pooja and followed it up with a win over Mansi in the 57kg final to clinch a berth in the national squad. Seventeen-year-old Sonam defeated Sakshi and Radhika to win the 62kg weight category.
Other weight categories sprung no surprises as star wrestlers Vinesh Phogat (53kg) and Divya Kakran (68kg) won their respective bouts with ease. Nirmala Devi (50kg) and Kiran Godara (76kg) were other wrestlers to win the trials.
Despite the loss, Sakshi can still qualify for Olympics if Sonam fails to make it to the quadrennial event through the Asian qualifier. “All these wrestlers will continue to camp in Lucknow, which will conclude on March 31. The selected ones will compete in the upcoming events while others will train here in Lucknow.
“Sakshi can still qualify through world qualifier scheduled in April if Sonam does not make it to the Tokyo Games via the Asian qualifier,” Kuldeep Singh, women’s wrestling national coach, said. The winners will compete first in the Ranking Series slated in Rome from January 15 to 18. It will be followed by the Asian Championships scheduled in New Delhi from February 18 to 23. The Asian qualifier will be held in Xian, China from March 27 to 29.