Sushil, Aware toy with rivals, Indiaclinchtwogoldonmat
RICH HAUL Sushil bags third straight CWG gold, Babita Kumari settles for silver in women’s 53kg GOLD COAST:
Indian wrestlers began their campaign at the Commonwealth Games with a bang, winning four medals, two of them gold, on Thursday. Rahul Aware (57kg) started the gold rush before Sushil Kumar outwitted his opponent to win the 74kg category — his third straight CWG gold.
In the women’s section, Babita Kumari settled for silver in 53kg division, while Kiran earned the 76kg bronze. The medals swelled India’s CWG kitty to 29 (14 gold, six silver and nine bronze). They are third in the standings behind runaway leaders Australia and England. The star of the day was Sushil, the larger-than-life double Olympic medallist who had overcome injuries and controversies to be in Gold Coast for the competition. Sushil’s domination was summed up by the way he went about his business in the final bout against Johannes Botha of South Africa.
The Indian, after the initial exchange of grips, went for his moves, bouncing Botha around at will. The South African seemed to have lost his bearings momentarily, forcing the referee to end the bout, with Sushil earning a 10-0 (technical superiority) win.
It was Sushil’s third straight CWG gold, adding to the ones he won in Delhi 2010 and Glasgow 2014. Sushil started the day with an 11-0 decimation of Jevan Balfour of Canada, winning by technical superiority. He didn’t waste time against his quarter-final opponent either — Muhammad Asad Butt of Pakistan. Sushil won again by technical superiority, scoring points from takedowns to close the bout 10-0 early in the second period.
He had a relatively less assertive outing against Australia’s Connor Evans in the semi-final, winning it 4-0. Sushil scored from two takedowns but despite the low scoring, the Indian was always in control against Evans, who fought brilliantly.
Aware, the former Asian Championships bronze medallist and Commonwealth Championships winner, beat Steven Takahashi of Canada 15-7 to win gold in men’s 57kg freestyle. While the scoreline would suggest a onesided bout, it was not a cakewalk in the final. The Canadian, a technically sound wrestler, led Aware in the early part of the bout after executing a brilliant shoulder throw.
Aware, however, used his experience to figure out the weakness in Takahashi’s armour — he was prone to single-leg takedowns, which also happens to be the bread-and-butter technique of the Indian. Aware, who hails from Maharashtra, began scoring from takedowns, increasing his lead, even as Takahashi’s challenge dissolved into halfhearted pushes. The Indian built a sizeable lead and had the luxury to coast into the gold medal in the final minute of the bout.
Babita Kumari lost to Canada’s Diana Weicker to settle for silver in women’s 53kg. With just five wrestlers in the fray in the class, the competition followed a round-robin format with each wrestler taking on the other four. Babita and Weicker reached the virtual summit clash after winning three bouts each.
The Indian started off aggressively but it became clear that the Canadian was technically far superior. The first period ended with Babita trailing 0-1 after losing a point following the running down of a 30-second penalty clock