Commonwealth Games
India's Wrestling squad for Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games
Here's the roster for India's wrestling squad at the 2022 Commonwealth Games.
Wrestling selection trials (Source: Twitter/ Wrestling Federation of India)
India has a knack for winning uncountable medals in the sport of wrestling, especially in the Commonwealth Games. This can be supported by the fact that the country has won a total of 102 medals in wrestling, slightly behind only the numbers in Shooting and Weightlifting.
Naturally, the Indian wrestlers will aim for some golden glory which they might even get, given the country's wrestling pedigree in the CWG. Former ace wrestler Yogeshwar Dutt has high expectations from the competing lot.
"For Wrestling, Commonwealth Games is important. I expect Indian Wrestlers to win 8-9 gold medals in CWG 2022. Like in the Olympics, (where) we got 2 out of 7 medals from wrestling, I want India to win maximum gold medals even in this event and make India proud," Dutt told ANI back in June.
The squad will include some of the big-wigs and stalwarts of the Indian wrestling circuit, which will surely beef up their medal chances at the Birmingham games.
The headline-makers in the Men's team have to be Tokyo medallists Bajrang Punia and Ravi Kumar Dahiya. The former will be competing in the freestyle 65 kg category, while the latter will be vying for top honours in the 57 kg category.
The other wrestlers who have joined the Olympians are Naveen, Deepak, Mohit Grewal, and Deepak Punia.
In the Women's squad, big names include Rio bronze medallist Sakshi Malik and Vinesh Phogat who was part of the Tokyo Olympics team. Malik will be taking part in the 62 kg category, while Phogat will be in the 53 kg event.
Other wrestlers who earned their berths on the Commonwealth team include Anshu Malik, Divya Kakran, Pooja Gehlot, and Pooja Sihag.
Men's Wrestling Squad:
Freestyle: Ravi Kumar Dahiya (57 kg), Bajrang Punia (65 kg), Naveen (74 kg), Deepak Punia (86 kg), Deepak (97 kg), and Mohit Grewal (125 kg).
Women's Wrestling Squad:
Pooja Gehlot (50 kg), Vinesh Phogat (53 kg), Anshu Malik (57 kg), Sakshi Malik (62 kg), Divya Kakran (68 kg), Pooja Sihag (76 kg).
