INDIA thumped Pakistan 36-22 in the finals of the Asian Kabaddi Championship in Iran, courtesy of an all-round show. Ajay Thakur continued to display heroics as India kept its neighbours at bay throughout the match.
The Ranbir Singh Khokhar-coached side saw Sandeep Narwal return to the right corner ahead of Mohit Chhillar, who featured against South Korea in the semi-finals. The two teams had earlier clashed in the group stage, where India had beaten the men in green 18-44.
At half-time, India had a healthy 15-point lead showed no signs of throwing away any chances. They brought in all their experience into the second half as Pardeep Narwal and Maninder Singh chipped in crucial points to aid Thakur in the attack. In the end, India had ensured a comfortable 14-point margin to be crowned champions of Asia.
Meanwhile, the women’s team too bagged gold at the Asian Kabaddi Championship after beating South Korea 42-20 in the final. India started brightly and kept the score ticking with multiple touch points and took a narrow but deserved 19-12 lead at half-time. Subsequently, a second all-out soon after the breather killed the game as a contest as the Banani Sahi-coached India ran off with the win by 22 point margin.