Bajrang Punia congratulates Ravi Kumar Dahiya for qualifying for men's 57kg freestyle final
Wrestler Bajrang Punia has congratulated fellow Indian wrestler Ravi Kumar Dahiya for the latter's success in the semifinals on Wednesday. Dahiya delighted all Indian sports fans as he qualified for the final of the men's freestyle 57kg event.
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Bajrang Punia took to Twitter after Ravi Kumar Dahiya's bout to congratulate him and wish him luck for the upcoming event.
Ravi Kumar Dahiya put together a series of successful bouts, first defeating Colombia's Óscar Tigreros 13-2 on technical superiority in the 1/8 final. It was then the turn of Bulgaria's Georgi Vangelov to taste defeat at the hands of the Indian wrestler; Ravi Kumar Dahiya stamped his authority in the bout and won 14-4 on technical superiority.
The wins against Óscar Tigreros and Georgi Vangelov ensured that Ravi Kumar Dahiya booked a semifinal spot against Kazakhstan's Nurislam Sanayev. And the semifinal between Dahiya and Sanayev proved to be a thrilling affair.
Ravi Kumar Dahiya had a narrow one-point lead at the end of the first period. However, Nurislam Sanayev proved to be a far superior wrestler in the second period as he attacked Dahiya relentlessly to score four two-pointers.
The Indian wrestler was able to score just one point in the first two minutes of the second period. It felt like that would be the end of the road for Dahiya, but he hung on.
He attacked Nurislam Sanayev to score two two-pointers in the last minute to keep his hopes of reaching the final alive.
In the final few seconds of the match, Ravi Kumar Dahiya used all his strength and might to overpower Nurislam Sanayev. Dahiya was able to flip Sanayev over and pin him down on the mat.
Once Sanayev was pinned down, the referee stopped the match and declared Dahiya as the winner.
In the gold medal match, Ravi Kumar Dahiya will face Zaur Uguev of the Russian Olympic Committee. The final is scheduled to take place on August 5.
Related: Why Bajrang Punia’s knee injury might bring up the “leg defence” worry at the Olympics