Gurpreet Singh looks to put on an improved show as Greco-Roman action continues at World Wrestling Championships
New Delhi, September 15: Asian Championships silver medallist Gurpreet Singh (77kg) will hope to put on an improved show on Day 3 as Greco-Roman action continues at the UWW World Senior Wrestling Championships 2019 in Nur-Sultan, Kazakhstan.
Having recorded India’s best-ever show at the Asian Wrestling Championships in April, India’s Greco-Roman grapplers have struggled to make a mark at this prestigious event but Gurpreet will look to change all that when he takes on Austria’s Michael Wagner in the qualifying rounds. The winner will progress into the Round of 32.
In 60kg, rising talent Manish, who had narrowly missed out on a bronze medal at the Junior World Wrestling Championship in 2017, will aim to win a bout at the senior event a year after managing to clear the qualifications. This time he is starting in the main draw where he will lock horns with Finland’s Lauri Johannes Maehoenen.
In 130kg, Naveen will vie for a berth in the Round of 16 when he meets Cuba’s 2018 Pan American Wrestling Championships gold medallist Oscar Pino Hinds in the qualifying stages.
Ravi becomes first Indian to win a bout this year
On Sunday, Ravi (97kg) was the saving grace for the Indian contingent on an otherwise disappointing day. He became the first Indian to win a bout at the UWW World Senior Wrestling Championships 2019 when he beat Chinese Taipei's Cheng Hao Chen 5-0.
His run was, however, cut short by Czech Republic's Artur Omarov in the Round of 16 when the latter proved too strong for him in a 7-0 verdict.
In 67kg, Manish lost to Bulgaria's Devvid Tihomirov Dimitrov by Technical Superiority after winning a solitary point while Sunil Kumar succumbed to a 0-6 defeat to USA's Joseph Patrick Rau in 87kg.
On the opening day of the championships, none of the Indian Greco-Roman wrestlers managed to win a round. Asian Championship silver medallist Harpreet Singh (82kg), Sagar (63kg), and Manjeet (55kg) went down in their opening bouts without registering a single point whereas Yogesh (72kg) gave his all before suffering a narrow defeat.