Ahmedabad, Oct 26 The Indian women’s team stormed into the semifinals with a dominating win over Nigeria, while the men’s side also registered a comprehensive victory over the same opponents at the inaugural Commonwealth Kabaddi Championship here on Monday.
The women’s team won 38-10 to book their semifinal spot, while the men’s team scripted a 50-23 victory. It was the fourth win of the championship for both sides.
India’s women were in control from the start, leading 24-6 at the break, and then carried that momentum into the second half to pick up the remaining 14 points.
Anu was the star of the show, collecting 11 points from 17 raids. Sakshi chipped in with four raid points, while captain Nidhi Sharma added a couple of points. At the back, Sabhai Gadhavi made her presence felt with three tackle points, Priya and Ritu took two points each.
For Nigeria, Robert Moses earned six raid points, and Bassey Edet added two points. Dennis Udeme took Nigeria’s lone tackle point, as the Indian raiders found little resistance for most of the contest.
The men’s team made it a double for the day, beating Nigeria for their fourth win of the championship. India raced to a 25-7 lead at the break, and finished ahead on raid points (31-21) and tackle points (7-2).
Sachin led the raiding with 12 points, and Aditya Shinde supported him with 11 raid points. Pankaj Mohite chipped in with eight raid points and two tackle points, while Surjeet Narwal topped the charts with four tackle points in defence.
For Nigeria, Edem Wisdom Ita led the way with eight raid points. Ekpe Victory Emmanuel picked up six points (five raid, one tackle), and Izu Prince Udah added five raid points for the African side.
Nigeria came out stronger after the break, scoring 16 points in the second half, but India’s lead was never in danger.
The women’s team will now face the second placed team in Group B on Friday, while the men’s team takes on Tanzania on Tuesday.
Earlier, an attacking masterclass powered Singapore to a comfortable 59-32 win over Australia, who remained winless after suffering their third consecutive defeat.
Aadit Senthilkumar and Sriraam Raja led Singapore’s charge, scoring eight and 15 points, respectively, to guide their team to a second successive victory.
Reuben William kept Australia in the contest with 11 points, seven of which came before half-time. However, Singapore tightened its defence after the break, using well-timed dashes to contain the Australian raider.
Malaysia delivered under pressure to register a commanding 43-26 victory over Tanzania in a must-win encounter.
Isaac Alton Andrew spearheaded the attack with 14 points from 18 raids, impressing with his acrobatic leaps. Tanzania’s Juma Sultani continued his impressive run, top-scoring for his side with 14 points. The victory ended Malaysia’s three-match losing streak.
After defeats to India and Sri Lanka, Uganda bounced back with a convincing 47-22 win over England. Douglas Mulalira played a key role in the victory, scoring 11 points.
In the women’s division, Uganda defeated Malaysia 35-23, with Nakayongo Shirat leading the attack with 18 points. Darsini Singh was Malaysia’s standout performer, finishing with 10 points.
(PTI News)
