India’s Anshu Malik bagged the bronze medal on the fourth day of the ongoing Junior World Championships in Trnava, Slovakia on Thursday, defeating Alina Kazymova of Russia 11-5 in the 59kg category.
After trailing 0-4 early on in the first period, Anshu produced a stirring comeback to take the lead into the mid-match interval, 5-4. The second three-minute period was all about Anshu as she raced to a 9-4 lead and then held her opponent off at the end to win 11-5.
In the other medal match for India on the day, Anju was defeated by Russia’s Verbina in the bronze medal bout of the women’s 55kg category. The Indian lost via technical superiority.
Former cadet world and Asian champion Anshu was a good bet to go all the way but she lost to 2017 Senior Asian champion Sae Nanjo of Japan in the 59kg semi-finals.
Earlier on Wednesday, the 19-year-old showed why she is regarded as India’s most promising young wrestler as she notched up dominant wins against Sule Kabak of Turkey (10-0) and Andribeth Belliard of Puerto Rico (6-0). But Nanjo was too quick for her and she could not match the Japanese wrestler’s class on the mat, losing by technical superiority.
She, however, made the most of the opportunity to win the bronze and produced a classy performance on Thursday to make sure she finished on the podium.
In the 57kg category, Mansi will fight for a bronze. Mansi had an impressive run till the semifinals in the women’s 57kg category, winning both her bouts by technical superiority but lost by the fall to Andoriahanako Sawa from Japan.
She will now fight it out with the winner of the bout between Germany’s Serena Boelke and Hannah Fay Taylor of Canada.
Karuna still has a chance to make it to the bronze medal round. She has to beat Poland’s Kamila Czeslawa Kulwicka in the repechage round. She had a poor start, losing by technical superiority to French grappler Koumba Selene Fanta.
The other Indians struggled on the mat as Swati Shinde lost her 1/8 round 3-14 to Russia’s Mariia Tiumetekova in the 53kg.
In the 62kg, Radhika was outplayed 2-8 by Russia’s Daria Bobrulko in the quarterfinals.
Jaspreet Kaur could not go beyond the qualification round, losing by fall to Turkey’s Asli Demir.
Sonika Hooda lost her quarterfinal 1-5 to Korea’s Hyeonyeong Park.
(With PTI inputs)
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