India’s Deepak Punia became the fourth Indian wrestler to finish with a silver medal at the Junior World Championships in Trnava, Slovakia.
On Sunday, Punia was up against Arif Ozen of Turkey in the 86kg weight category final but lost the closely-contested bout 1-2. With that India ended the championships with seven medals.
Punia, who finished fifth at last year’s junior worlds, conceded a takedown early in the first period and Ozen sat on his 2-0 lead for the remaining part of the bout.
Despite his efforts, Punia could not pull off his attacks on the Turk, who did get a passivity warning in the second period. But he did well to stop Punia reaching for his legs.
Late in the bout, a pushout gave Punia a point but that was too little too late. India’s 17-year-old wait for a gold medal at junior world championships continues.
India had a chance to add a bronze medal to the tally with Sachin Rathi wrestling in the playoff but he was humbled by Russia’s Devid Betanov 11-1.
Buy an annual Scroll Membership to support independent journalism and get special benefits.
Our journalism is for everyone. But you can get special privileges by buying an annual Scroll Membership. Sign up today!