Vinesh Phogat is guaranteed a medal at the Paris Olympics 2024. (Image: AFP)
Vinesh Phogat is now one step away from a historic gold medal as she delivered on the big stage by beating the undefeated to dominating when it counts the most.
From pulling one of the biggest upsets of the Paris 2024 Olympics, Vinesh Phogat now stands in with a chance to become the first Indian wrestler to claim a gold medal after sensational wins over the undefeated Yui Sasaki followed by Ukraine’s Oksana and now Yusneylys Guzman in the semi-final on Tuesday.
Her first big obstacle was deemed to be an impossible challenge as she was up against the top-seeded Sasaki, who remains undefeated in her 82 bouts so far. But Vinesh was the one to beat the streak and get herself to the next stage of the tournament.
“It’s a miracle, no less than a miracle what Vinesh has done today. It was such a sad Monday due to Nisha’s injury but Vinesh has lightened up the day,” India’s national coach Virender Dahiya said before leaving for Anitm Panghal’s draw.
The premature exit of the World Champion was certainly one that the remaining competitors relished when looking at their respective campaigns.
After a fairly pragmatic start from both competitors, Phogat looked to get in the mix. She was able to take advantage of Susaki’s flat-footedness as the Japanese wrestler was down on the mat with Vinesh taking the two points for the takedown. Despite the late challenge by the Japanese coach, it proved to be futile as Phogat had done the unthinkable.
Despite being worn down in the match against Sasaki, she came in with full strength against Livach but the match was all about her strength this time as she posted consecutive takedowns coming from the counter followed by the double-leg takedown as well to lead 4-0.
But the Ukrainian looked to come back into the contest as she earned a point for pushing out of the single-leg takedown. But Vinesh went on to challenge the decision which proved to be unsuccessful.
With the score 5-4 in favour of Vinesh and just under a minute to go, Vinesh was able to close out the contest with another takedown to seal the contest.
The semifinal bout against Cuba’s Yusneylis Guzman Lopez proved to be an even more dominant contest for Phogat who was able to cleanly sweep the contest. Yusneylis was penalised for passivity to begin with which put her on the backfoot. But Phogat was able to play the situation just right. After taking the second warning for passivity, Phogat went in all guns blazing for the takedown which gave her four points to end the contest with her opponent scoring none.
Phogat Before the Paris Olympics 2024
Prior to the Olympics, Phogat had taken part in the Spanish Grand Prix where she was victorious albeit not being able to compete with the best competition, but the time on the mat proved to be some crucial practice which served her in good stead.
Most of her 2023 season saw her miss out on preparations and training. Now, Vinesh has the opportunity to make one of the biggest statements possible if she brings home the gold.
(with PTI Inputs)
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