South Asian Games: Joshna triumphs in a 'bloody' final; India cross 50 gold-mark
World No.14 Joshna Chinappa defeated Maria Toorpakai of Pakistan 10-12, 11-7, 11-9, 11-7, in a bitter final that saw Maria receive medical treatment after Joshna's racquet struck her in the forehead. India, meanwhile, continued their gold hunt in the tournament with 53 golds and a total of 79 medals.
The hosts’ golden run at the 12th South Asian Games continued on Monday as they clinched 23 gold medals to take their overall tally of gold past the fifty-mark. The majority of the medals came from archery, wrestling and weightlifting as India added 23 gold, 8 silver and 3 bronze medals to take the overall tally to 79.
Joshna Chinappa faced off against Maria in the final of the women's squash event, in what soon turned into an acrimonious affair. It was probably the India-Pakistan rivalry that played out on court, however, the match soon reached the stage when referee Munir Shah had to caution both the players against using “intentional obstruction and dramatisation of infringements”. Maria also had to receive medical treatment after Joshna's racquet struck her on the forehead in the course of play. After trading the opening two sets, Maria, ranked 50 in the world was leading the third against her No. 14-ranked opponent. However, she was unable to sustain the tempo after the injury and Joshna wrested the set and the next to clinch the gold.
Archery – 5 gold, 2 silver
1. Rajat Chauhan – Gold – Men’s Compound
2. Purvasha Sudhir Shende – Gold – Women’s Compound
3. Mixed Team – Gold – Compound
4. Women’s Team – Gold – Compound
5. Men’s Team – Gold – Compound
6. Abhishek Verma – Silver - Men’s Compound
7. Jyothi Surekha Vennam – Silver - Women’s Compound
Wrestling – 5 gold, 1 silver
1. Pradeep – Gold – Men’s 74kg
2. Mausam Khatri – Gold – Men’s 97kg
3. Nikki – Gold – Women’s 75kg
4. Rajani – Gold – Women’s 69kg
5. Shilpi Sheren – Gold – Women’s 63kg
6. Mandeep – Silver – Men’s 125kg
Weightlifting – 4 gold
1. Kavita Devi – Gold – Women’s 75kg
2. Vikas Thakur – Gold – Men’s 85kg
3. Pradeep Singh – Gold – Men’s 94kg
4. Vicotr Abhilash Christopher – Gold – Men’s 105kg
Badminton – 2 gold
1. Men’s Team – Gold
2. Women’s Team – Gold
Cycling – 2 gold
1. Men’s Team – Gold - Men's 70km Team Time Trial
2. Women’s Team – Gold - Women's 40km Team Time Trial
Squash – 1 gold, 2 bronze
1. Joshna Chinappa – Gold – Women’s Singles
2. Saurav Ghosal – Bronze – Men’s Singles
3. Harinder Pal Singh – Bronze – Men’s Singles
Swimming – 3 gold, 4 silver, 1 bronze
1. V Malvika – Gold - Women's 800m Freestyle
2. P. S. Madhu – Gold - Men's 100m Backstroke
3. Sandeep Sejwal – Gold - 50m Breaststroke
4. Maana Patel – Silver - Women's 100m Backstroke
5. Sanu Debnath – Silver - Men's 400m Individual Medley
6. Sethu Manickavel – Silver - Men's 100m Backstroke
7. Punit Rana – Silver - Men's 50m Breaststroke
8. Maana Patel – Bronze – Women’s 50m Freestyle
Wushu – 1 gold, 1 silver
1. M. Punshiva Meitei – Gold - Taolu- Nanquan & Nangun
2. Swechcha Jatav – Silver - Taolu- Nanquan & Nando