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Neelam Sirohi and Kajal Dhochak won silver medals at the World Championships, marking a historic first for Indian women wrestling.
Kajal Dhochak lost the gold medal bout 6-8. (Picture Credit: UWW)
India came within touching distance of a historic gold medal at the World Wrestling Championships in Astana on Wednesday, but Kajal Dhochak’s valiant effort in the women’s 76kg final ended in defeat against Ukraine’s Anastasiya Alpyeyeva.
The silver medal, however, marked a landmark achievement, making Kajal the first Indian woman to win a medal in the heavyweight category at the World Championships.
Neelam Sirohi also finished with silver after losing the women’s 50kg final to Japan’s four-time world champion Yui Susaki, who had not surrendered a single point on her way to the title bout.
The results marked another first for Indian wrestling, with two Indian women reaching the gold medal bouts at the same edition of the World Championships. Sushil Kumar, who won the world title in 2010, remains India’s only world champion wrestler.
Neelam Vs Susaki
Neelam was the first Indian to compete in a final, taking on Susaki, whose remarkable career includes just one defeat. The Japanese star’s record made her a formidable opponent, but Neelam managed to keep the contest competitive for almost three minutes.
The opening two minutes were largely uneventful, as Neelam successfully kept Susaki from launching an effective attack. The Japanese wrestler eventually found her opportunity, launching a left-leg attack to score a takedown before pinning Neelam to the mat and clinching gold.
At A Glance
Kajal Dhochak won a silver medal in the women’s 76kg final after losing 6-8 to Ukraine’s Anastasiya Alpyeyeva.
Neelam Sirohi secured a silver medal after losing the women’s 50kg final to Japan’s Yui Susaki.
The achievements marked the first time two Indian women reached gold medal bouts at the same edition of the World Championships.
The triumph took Susaki’s world championship tally to five, adding to her standing as one of the most dominant wrestlers of her era.
Kajal’s Fight
Kajal’s final against Alpyeyeva was a far tighter contest, with neither wrestler able to gain a decisive edge in the early exchanges.
The Indian conceded the opening points after stepping outside the wrestling area and receiving a passivity penalty, falling behind 0-2. She fought back towards the end of the first period with a push-out throw to bring the score level at 2-2.
Both wrestlers became more aggressive in the second period. Alpyeyeva landed a double-leg attack, prompting an immediate response from Kajal, whose own attack left the Ukrainian with a bleeding nose. The score stood at 4-4, with Kajal holding the advantage on criteria after scoring the last point.
The decisive moment came with only 20 seconds remaining. Alpyeyeva completed a takedown and collected two additional points to take control of the bout.
Kajal refused to give up, scoring a two-point takedown with five seconds left and making one final attempt to turn the contest around. However, Alpyeyeva held on to win 8-6.
The defeat left Kajal, a two-time U20 world champion, with silver despite an impressive journey to the final. Her run included a remarkable comeback against Kyrgyzstan’s Aiperi Medet Kyzy in the semifinals, where she recovered from a 1-7 deficit to win 10-7.
Although neither Indian wrestler managed to secure gold, their silver medals represent a major step forward for the country’s women’s wrestling programme. Before this edition, Anshu Malik was the only Indian woman to have reached a senior World Championships final.
‘It Will Be Difficult to Sleep Tonight’
India’s chief women’s coach Virender Dahiya was left disappointed after Kajal came so close to winning the title.
“Kajal was very close to get that elusive gold. She just needed to hold off 20 seconds. It was just lack of experience at this level. We were really close, it will be difficult to sleep tonight,” Dahiya told news agency PTI.
He said the loss was particularly difficult for the young wrestler to process, while expressing confidence in India’s prospects in the remaining events.
“She is just a kid, and very sad now. We knew that it will be tough for Neelam but Kajal really had a great chance. This competition has given her experience. I am sure we will have more medals tomorrow. Both Manisha and Ahilya are capable of winning medals,” he added.
Kajal’s family was also visibly disappointed and chose not to speak.
Disappointing Start To Campaign
The day’s earlier sessions had brought little cheer for the Indian contingent, with three wrestlers losing their pre-quarterfinal bouts and another suffering defeat in the qualification round.
In the women’s 65kg category, Rajnita’s campaign ended with a 2-6 loss to Japan’s Nana Ikehata in the repechage round. Rajnita put up a determined fight, but Ikehata’s experience proved decisive.
Nishu suffered another setback for India in the women’s 53kg category. After beginning her campaign with a confident ‘victory by fall’ against Morocco’s Sabah Kaneb, she was beaten 0-8 by Romania’s Andreea Beatrice Ana in the pre-quarterfinals.
Ana’s sharp counter-attacks prevented Nishu from executing an effective offensive move, allowing the Romanian to secure a comprehensive win.
Srishti enjoyed a strong start in the women’s 68kg category, defeating Uzbekistan’s Firuza Esenbaeva 8-0 in her opening bout. However, she could not maintain that form against Kyrgyzstan’s Meerim Zhumanazarova in the pre-quarterfinals, going down 1-5.
The first period featured little attacking action, with both wrestlers spending much of the time in a standing position. Zhumanazarova gained the lead through a passivity point and carried it into the break.
Srishti attempted a single-leg attack in the second period, but Zhumanazarova reacted quickly, countering the move with a two-point takedown to extend her advantage and secure the victory.
Srishti’s campaign is not over yet, as a win in the repechage round would keep her in contention for a medal.
In the women’s 62kg category, Neha Sangwan faced a difficult outing against Russian top seed Amina Tandelova. The Russian needed just 76 seconds to register a convincing victory, beginning with a lightning-quick takedown before executing consecutive gut wrenches and two leg-lace rolls to end the contest in a little over a minute.
Tanu Sharma also lost her qualification bout, going down 2-9 to Poland’s Wiktoria Choluj. However, Tanu remains in the bronze medal race through the repechage route, as Choluj progressed to the gold medal bout.
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Ask News18Kajal Dhochak lost the women’s 76kg final to Ukraine’s Anastasiya Alpyeyeva with a score of 6-8, securing a historic silver medal.
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Feroz Khan has been covering sports for over 12 years now and is currently working with Network18 as Principal Correspondent. He embarked on his journey in 2011 and has since acquired vast experience …Read More
October 29, 2026, 09:25 IST
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