Asian Wrestling Championships 2025: Sunil Kumar to compete in bronze medal match after semifinal defeat

Indian wrestler Sunil Kumar will compete in the bronze medal match against China’s Jiaxin Huang after losing in the semifinals of the 87kg Greco-Roman bout in the Asian Championship on Tuesday.

Sunil, a silver medallist in 2019 who is looking to regain some of his old magic, had registered a 10-1 victory over Tajikistan’s Sukhrob Abdulkhaev in the quarterfinal. He scored all of his points in the second period.

However, it was Iran’s Yasin Yazdi who marched into the 87kg final with a 3-1 victory over Sunil in the semifinal clash.

Sagar Thakran won his 77kg qualifications bout but lost 10-0 in the quarterfinal to Jordan’s Amro Sadeh. With a 4-point throw from par terre, Sadeh booked a place in the semifinals.

After this defeat, Sagar’s fate depended on the semifinal result of his rival.

Umesh (63kg) lost the qualification but may get a repechage if his rival wins the semifinals later in the day.

Nitin (55kg) and Prem (130kg) were ousted in the qualification round.