Indian wrestlers to have a shot at history at the Tokyo Olympics

Sonam Malik, the Trump Card

Sonam Malik - India's trump card who shocked Rio medalist Sakshi Malik

When Sakshi Malik saved India the ignominy of returning empty handed from Rio with a historic bronze medal, everyone expected her to repeat her success in Tokyo. However, to everyone's shock, it is not Sakshi, but Sonam Malik, who will represent India in Women's Wrestling [62 kg.] at the Tokyo Olympics.

But who is Sonam Malik? She is a junior stalwart who has won multiple gold medals at the national level. She has also won two gold medals at the Cadet World Championships, the junior-most category of the World Wrestling Championships.

However, the Haryanvi wrestler shot to fame in 2020, when she defeated Sakshi Malik not once but twice - once during the trials for the Asian Championships, and once during the trials for the Asian qualifiers.

Having won her ticket to Tokyo at the Asian qualifiers, Sonam Malik will now test her luck at the Olympics. If everything goes right, she could be as much of a dark horse as Sakshi Malik proved to be at Rio.

Whether or not the Indian wrestlers succeed in landing a podium finish is another issue altogether. If they succeed, it will be nothing less than absolute glory, and one shouldn't be surprised if India gets a huge chunk of Olympic medals in wrestling itself.