A powerhouse in CWG, Indian wrestling team's real test will be Asiad and Worlds
After a great show at CWG, bigger challenge awaits IndiansNEW DELHI: Commonwealth Games has traditionally been a happy hunting ground for the Indian wrestlers. Birmingham 2022 was no exception. India ruled the wrestling mat in a depleted field, getting medals in all 12 weight categories and improving the gold tally from previous edition's five to six this time. Bajrang Punia, Deepak Punia, Ravi Dahiya and Naveen finished on top of the podium in the men's freestyle category, and Vinesh Phogat and Sakshi Malik in the women's section. India, a wrestling powerhouse among the Commonwealth nations, didn't face much problem in fending off the challenge from Canadian, Pakistani and Nigerian grapplers. Post Birmingham, India are ranked second overall behind Canada in the history of CWG wrestling competitions, winning a total of 114 medals, including 49 gold. Canada lead the chart with 69 gold, 48 silver and 30 bronze.
Read AlsoCWG 2022: Golden hat-trick for Vinesh Phogat; Ravi Dahiya, Naveen Sihag prove too strong for field in wrestling gold rushVinesh Phogat became the first Indian woman wrestler to win three consecutive Commonwealth Games gold medals and the country, like the last edition, succeeded in winning medals in all 12 categories. Overall, India have won six gold, one silver and five bronze medals.
But comparing the CWG performance to that at the World Champion ships and Asian Games, the country's medal count takes a nosedive. In the history of the Worlds, India has managed to win just 20 medals so far, with two-time Olympic medallist Sushil Kumar being the only Indian wrestler (male or female) to win a gold at the Moscow edition in 2010. Tokyo Olympic bronze medallist, Bajrang Punia, is the only Indian to win multiple
