Lucknow, May 31: Former World Championships silver medallist Deepak Punia marked a successful return to the Indian team after moving up a weight category, winning the 97kg freestyle competition at the Asian Games selection trials here on Sunday.
Competing in the 97kg division after spending most of his career at 86kg, Deepak looked comfortable against bigger opponents and capped his campaign with an emphatic victory by fall over Jointy Kumar in the final to secure a berth in the Indian squad fort he Asian Games. There were no major surprises on the concluding day of the trials as Olympic bronze medallist Aman Sehrawat and the formidable Sujeet Kalkal also justified their top billings by winning their respective categories.
Aman, India’s biggest medal hope in men’s freestyle, dominated the 57kg final, thrashing Rahul by technical superiority (11-1) to retain his place in the national team. Sujeet continued his impressive run of form in the 65kg category, defeating Vishal Kaliramana 2-0 in a tactical final to earn the Asian Games berth.
The 74kg final produced a close contest, with Sagar Jaglan edging past Jaideep 8-6 to claim a spot in the Indian squad. In 86kg, Mukul Dahiya expectedly beat Amit 4-2 in the final, while heavyweight wrestler Rajat Rahul overcame Dinesh 10-6 in the 125kg title bout. In the Greco-Roman section, Sumit defeated Chetan 9-5 in the 60kg final. (PTI)
