Pawan Sehrawat's Super 10 helps India beat Iran 33-29 and win gold medal at Asian Games 2023

Pawan Sehrawat's Super 10 helped the Indian team regain the gold medal in men's kabaddi event at Asian Games 2023 on Saturday. India defeated Iran 33-29 in a dramatic final to win their eighth gold medal in men's kabaddi at the continental meet.

Sehrawat led his team from the front with a Super 10. Iran dominated the match initially, but Sunil Kumar's splendid tackling skills gave India a 17-13 lead at half-time. Iran bounced back, riding on Mohammadreza Chiyaneh's raiding and Amirhossein Bastami's defense in right corner.

In the 39th minute, the scores were level at 29-29, when Pawan Sehrawat went in to raid. Sehrawat stepped into the lobby without any touch, and two defenders followed him as well. Meanwhile, Amirhossein Bastami stepped out of the line without any contact with Pawan.

There was a massive controversy in the final because of that raid. The referees changed their decision from one point each to three points to India and one point to Iran multiple times. There was some confusion regarding the rules, which led to the match being suspended for almost an hour.

Eventually, as per the rules of the International Kabaddi Federation (IKF), India earned three points from that raid. The scoreline was 31-29 in India's favor when the match resumed. India ultimately won the match 33-29.

Iran failed to defend the gold medal at Asian Games 2023

Five years ago, Iran made history by winning the gold medal in the men's kabaddi event. India were eliminated in the semifinals with a defeat against Iran. The Indian team avenged the loss with a four-point victory earlier on Saturday in Hangzhou.

Earlier in the day, the Indian women's kabaddi team defeated Chinese Taipei in the final to win a gold medal. India have swept the gold medals in the kabaddi events. The Indian athletes have won 105 medals so far across all sports at the Asian Games 2023.