Vinesh Phogat Defeats No 1 Seed In Round of 16: Indian wrestling star Vinesh Phogat defeated No. 1 seed and Tokyo Olympics gold medallist Yui Susaki in the first round of the women’s 50 kg freestyle wrestling at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
The Indian wrestling contingent kicked off their campaign at the 2024 Paris Olympics in a disappointing fashion on Monday, August 5. Nisha Dahiya, who was a medal contender in the 68 kg women’s freestyle, was leading against Sol Gum Pak of North Korea 8-1 in the quarterfinal. Nisha injured her right hand, an injury that the Indian coach accuses the North Korean wrestler of causing intentionally. The Indian then went on to lose her match 10-8.
Vinesh is the second Indian wrestler who started her campaign. And despite her being one of the most senior and best Indian wrestlers, not much was expected of her due to her first-round opponent. Phogat took on Japan’s Yui Susaki in the round of 16.
Yui was not only the No. 1 seed in this competition but was also the gold medallist at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. She had barely lost any match in the last five years and won the gold at Tokyo without conceding even a single point.
Vinesh Phogat Defeats No 1 Seed In Round of 16
Going into the match as the underdog, Phogat started the match in defence mode. In fact, both wrestlers warmed up into the match and felt their opponent for much of the first three-minute round.
In the middle of the second minute, Yui was given a point to open the scoring as Vinesh was deemed too passive after a 30-second shot clock. The first big attack came at the end of the first round as the Japanese looked for a double-leg takedown, which was well-defended by the Indian as we went into halftime.
The second round got off to a cagey start as well, with not much happening in the first minute. So much so that another 30-second shot clock was imposed at Vinesh Phogat, at the end of which Susaki won another point. The No. 1 seed was now on a 2-0 lead with about 75 seconds to go.
The match went into its last minute and then the last 30 seconds with Phogat behind by two points. With the last 20 seconds remaining, it got a little more frantic with the Indian looking for points.
With 10 seconds to go, Vinesh finally got Yui Susaki in a two-point position as the match came to an end. It was also deemed that the Japanese wrestler had left the circle, thus giving another point to Vinesh Phogat, who won the match 3-2 in the final seconds.
The Japanese coach took a review. After much deliberation by the umpires, the decision stayed as we saw one of the biggest upsets at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Vinesh then also went on to win her quarterfinal bout against Ukraine’s No. 8 seed, Oksana Livach, 7-5 in a more point-rich contest. In the shot of a medal, the prolific Indian wrestler will now face Yusneylys Guzman of Cuba in the semi-final later today.
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