World Wrestling Championships: Pruthviraj Enters Quarterfinals, Abhimanyu In Bronze Play-Off – News18

Indian free-style wrestlers, barring Pruthviraj Patil (92kg), had another disappointing day in office with three of them losing in the preliminary rounds of the World Championships, on Sunday.

The Indians, who are competing under the United World Wrestling flag following the ban of Wresting Federation of India by the international body, have a faint chance of bagging a bronze medal in 70kg where Abhimanyu entered the medal round through the repechage route.

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Abhimanyu, who had lost in the quarterfinal on Saturday got a lifeline when the American grappler Zain Allen Retherford, who had defeated him in the last-eight, made it to the final.

The repechage comes into effect for wrestlers who lose in the pre-quarterfinals or later. It allows the wrestlers a chance to revive themselves in the competition if the opponent they have lost to reaches the final.

In the repechage round Abhimanyu defeated Tajikistan’s Mustafo Akhmedov 3-1 to secure a spot in the bronze-medal round.

However, Abhimanyu cannot secure a 2024 Paris quota place for the country as the 70kg division is not an Olympic weight category.

Pruthviraj, in 92kg category, defeated Moldovan grappler Ion Demian 6-4 in the qualification bout before returning on the mat to defeat eighth-seeded Ermak Kardanov of Slovakia 6-1 in the pre-quarterfinal.

The world No. 12 Pruthviraj will take on Georgian wrestler Miriani Maisuradze in the quarterfinals in the non-Olympic category.

In the 79kg non-Olympic category, India’s top wrestler Sachin Mor beat Mexican Raul Israel Dominguez 8-3 in the opening round before going down to lower-ranked Akhmed Usmanov, competing as a neutral athlete, who won on technical superiority.

Aman Sehrawat, who had asserted his supremacy in the men’s 57kg free-style category during the national trials to clinch the World Championships berth, earned a ‘victory by superiority’ (VSU) against Moldovan Igor Chichioi 11-0 in the first round before losing to world No.2 2 from Albania Zelimkhan Abakarov 11-0.

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Sehrawat could get another opportunity to enter the bronze-medal round via the repechage route. If that happens he could also win a ticket to Paris as 57kg is an Olympic category.

In 74kg, an Olympic category, 14th seeded Naveen got the better of Tobias Portmann of Switzerland 12-6 in the opening round but lost the next match to the lower-ranked Arsalan Budazhapov of Kyrgyzstan 6-4.

(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed – PTI)