Dominant Divya wins India’s third medal on the mat
› I wasn’t sure of such an easy outing today (in bronze medal match). But I was confident and focused on my plan and it really worked well. DIVYA KAKRAN, bronze medallist
JAKARTA: Indian tri-colour fluttered again on the wrestling arena when young Divya Kakran won bronze medal in the 68 kg category brushing aside Chinese Taipei’s Chen Wenling in her third place play-off bout at the JCC Assembly Hall here on Tuesday.
Muzzafarnagar girl Kakran, 20, who had a bronze medal at the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games in April, denied her rival any opening as she dominated the bout and won on technical superiority with a score of 10-0.
“I wasn’t sure of such an easy outing today, but it turned out to be lopsided. I was focused on my plan and it really worked well though I was expecting some resistance from Taipei girl,” Divya said.
“My coach (Kuldeep Malik) had more confidence in me than myself. This is my first Asian Games and I am happy to win my first medal. I have worked hard for it,” she said
Divya said she was confident but never allowed her mind to waver from the target.
“I was confident but not desperate. whenever I have been desperate it has cost me medal. I committed mistakes at the Junior Asian Wrestling Championship in Delhi. But here I knew that gold and silver have gone out of reach, so I fought hard for whatever was available. I just went for it,” she said.
It was India’s third medal from the mat. On the second day of the competition, Vinesh Phogat won a gold medal in the 50 kg category and before that it was gutsy Bajrang Punia, who also bagged a gold medal in the 65 kg category. Divya’s next mission is to change the colour of her medal at the World Championship in October this year. “I would love to better my performance and win gold at the World Championship as it’s my dream.”
Coach Malik was happy to see Divya proving her talent. “She (Divya) has been a wonderful wrestler and I have always find her a medal winning prospect. She had already won over 60 medals in domestic and international events and I am sure that today’s bronze would motivate her to win bigger laurels for the country, like Olympics etc.”
WISHES POUR IN
Congratulations poured in for Divya, starting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. “One of our most promising wrestlers, Divya Kakran shines in the 68 Kg Freestyle wrestling event at the @asiangames2018. Congratulations for the Bronze Medal,” the PM tweeted.
“FANTASTIC MATCH, Divya Kakran!” Union sports minister Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore tweeted.