Olympic silver medallist Ravi Dahiya out of 2023 Asian Games after getting knocked out in wrestling trials

Olympic silver medallist Ravi Kumar Dahiya will not be in action at the 2023 Asian Games after he was knocked out of the trials on Sunday, July 23.

Dahiya's bid to take part in the continental multi-sport event was ended prematurely by Atish Todkar in a 57kg bout at the Indira Gandhi Stadium in Delhi. Todkar started the bout slower of the two and found himself trailing 4-6.

However, he bounced back in style and went ahead soon after, eventually taking an unassailable 20-8 lead. He remained focused and dodged every takedown attempt by Dahiya to register a famous win — which included a rare 'pin' against the 25-year-old.

The defeat has added to Dahiya's challenging year. This was his first outing since being ruled out of action by ACL (Anterior Cruciate Ligament) and MCL (Medial Collateral Ligament) injuries in his right knee.

Dahiya won the silver medal in the 57kg men's freestyle wrestling category at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and gold at Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games.

In other results, World Championships medallists Sarita Mor and Anshu Malik both failed to make the cut in the women’s section. Junior World Championships bronze medallist Mansi Ahlawat defeated Mor in the semifinal before beating fellow junior wrestler Sito to win the division.

Antim Panghal, the 2022 U-20 world champion, dominated the 53kg division, pinning Manju in the final. However, the 19-year-old remains on Asian Games standby for Vinesh Phogat.

Bajrang Punia (men’s 65kg) and Phogat (women’s 53kg) were exempted from the Asian Games trials by the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) ad-hoc committee, which currently conducts the day-to-day affairs of the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI).

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India's wrestling squad for 2023 Asian Games

A total of 18 wrestlers, six each in Greco-Roman, men’s freestyle, and women’s freestyles, have been selected for the 2023 Asian Games in Hangzhou. In addition to that, two standbys (women’s 53kg and men’s 65kg) have also been picked.

Greco-Roman: Gyanender (60 kg), Neeraj (67 kg), Vikash (77 kg), Sunil Kumar (87 kg), Narinder Cheema (97 kg) and Naveen (130 kg)

Women’s freestyle: Pooja Gehlot (50 kg), Vinesh Phogat (53 kg), Mansi Ahlawat (57 kg), Sonam Malik (62 kg), Radhika (68 kg) and Kiran (76 kg)

Men’s freestyle: Aman Sehrawat (57 kg), Bajrang Punia (65 kg), Yash (74 kg), Deepak Punia (86 kg), Vicky (97 kg) and Sumit (125 kg)

Standbys: Antim Panghal (for Vinesh Phogat) and Vishal Kaliraman (for Bajrang Punia)