Following the good work by the Greco grapplers, the lady cadets put on an impressive showing on Day 1 of the Women Freestyle Wrestling at the World Cadet Wrestling Championships Tbilisi, Georgia.
The most successful of the lot was Manisha at 38kg, as she dispatched opponents from strong wrestling countries like USA, Azerbaijan, Russia and Bulgaria to win India’s first Medal, a gold at these Championships.
Showing great heart, against physically superior opponents, Manisha displayed great skills in the standing wrestling positions, something of a rarity amongst Indians. Combining this skill with an excellent ability to evade leg takedowns, the slender Indian never showed any signs of pressure during the entire tournament.
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Adopting a different strategy for the final by maintaining a lower centre of gravity, the Indian repeatedly attacked the Bulgarian’s legs, who was equally adept in evasive tactics. Persistence and patience won the day for the baby-faced Indian.
Ankush strong
Ankush who participated in the 43kg narrowly lost out in the bronze medal contest to her Egyptian opponent, in spite of being more aggressive of the two. Ankush had lost out to a very strong Russian in the quarters after defeating her Romanian opponent in the round of 16.
During these two bouts, the Indian had displayed a propensity, to keep attacking the opponents’ legs from wrong positions. This got her into trouble more than once, the price being a thrashing at the Russian’s hands.
But the repechage rounds saw a different wrestler, as she adopted different strategies to first beat the athletic Canadian, before succumbing to the narrowest of margins in the bronze medal contest.
Impressive Minakshi in 49 kg category
The most impressive of the Indians though was Minakshi in the 49 kg category. Displaying great physical strength to race past her German and Chinese Taipei opponents, Minakshi suffered a lapse in concentration in the quarters against Kilty of USA. The result was a pin. Very adept at different positions on the mat, Minakshi was able to wrestle out of difficult positions on more than one occasion.
Wrestling in the same weight category as Vinesh and Ritu Phogat, this young cadet wrestler looks the part at the international level. Exposure in international competitions and the right diet management should help these 3 promising cadets go a long way in the world of wrestling.
Maybe we are sowing the seeds for a successful 2020-Tokyo class.
Today’s performance has raised the interest levels for Day 2 of the Ladies Competition.
Will anybody emulate Manisha? Only father time has the answer.
