Veer signs off with a win

The Hindu

ABSOLUTE DOMINANCE: Dilli Veer's Vinesh Phogat (on top) maintained her personal clean slate with her fifth victory of the season, beating Bengaluru Yodhas's Alyssa Lampe 10-0 on Wednesday. Photo: G.P. Sampath Kumar

After having gone winless in four ties, Dilli Veer finished its campaign with a thrilling 4-3 win over Bengaluru Yodhas in the Pro Wrestling League at the Koramangala Indoor Stadium here on Wednesday.

Yodhas lost the first two matches but clawed their way back winning three on the trot, with icon player Narsingh Yadav winning his fifth consecutive match.

However, Dilli’s two-time Commonwealth Games gold medallist Vinesh Phogat demolished the United States’ Alyssa Lampe 10-0 in the sixth match which lasted 1 minute and 48 secs.

Then, in the final match-up, India’s Bajrang Punia, who has had an inconsistent run, lost 10-1 to World Championship silver medallist Navroz Ikhtiyor to hand Dilli the tie.

“We thought Bajrang would put up a good fight,” said Dilli coach Sujeet Maan. “But his bout was one-sided.”

He also praised Phogat — made the icon player after three-time European Champion Sofia Mattsson pulled out — who has won all her five matches.

“Vinesh said before that she would beat everybody. Today she has proved that,” Maan said.

Yodhas, as a result, will finish fourth on four points with two wins and three losses.

The results: Dilli Veer bt Bengaluru Yodhas 4-3 (Men’s 57-kg: Erdenebat Bekhbayar bt Sandeep Tomar 7-0; Women’s 53-kg: Liliya Horishna bt Lalita Sherawat 11-6; Men’s 125-kg: Krishan Kumar lost to Modzmanashvili Davit 0-10; Women’s 58-kg: Yesilirmak Elif Jale lost to Yulia Ratkevich 1-3;Men’s 74-kg: Dinesh Kumar lost to Narsingh Yadav 4-8; Women’s 48 kg: Vinesh Phogat bt Alyssa Lampe 10-0. Men’s 65-kg: Navruzov Ikhtiyor bt Bajrang Punia 10-1.

Categories blocked: Men's 97-kg and Women's 69-kg