Asian C'ships: Nirmala settles for silver after losing in 50kg final

Indian wrestler Nirmala Devi settled for a silver medal after going down narrowly to Japan's Miho Igarashi in the 50kg final of the Asian Championships on Thursday. Nirmala, a 2010 Commonwealth Games silver medallist, lost 2-3 to Igarashi in the summit clash. The Haryana wrestler had defeated Mongolia's Munkhnar Byambasuren 6-4 and Uzbeskitan's Dauletbike Yakhshimuratova by technical superiority in the earlier rounds.

Earlier, Divya Kakran became only the second Indian woman to win a gold medal at the Asian Wrestling Championships after a dominant show in which she won all her bouts by fall, including against junior world champion Naruha Matsuyuki. Navjot Kaur had become the first Indian woman to win a gold medal at the Asian Championships when she triumphed in 2018 in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan in 65kg.