Blood, sweat and tears. All of the above were shed as two titans of Kabaddi battled it out in the finals of the Men’s Kabaddi event in Hangzhou. And ultimately, it was India who triumphed, as the Men in Blue rose above the Iranians in a match that ended 33-29 mired with controversy.
The two teams were neck-and-neck through the first half, as they traded raid after raid, keeping the scores fairly close. India closed the first half with the edge over Iran, with a scoreline of 17-13.
But, upon the beginning of the second half, the Indian side began to build on a solid lead to keep the Iranians away from reaching distance. But, Iran were in o mood to give up as the team rallied back from a five-point deficit to tie the game level at 25-25 with just a little less than 10 minutes to go.
Therein ensued yet another trading of raids, one after the other, as both sides were painstakingly clinching at whatever they could get as the clock ticked down.
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With less that 2 minutes to go, the scores were tied at 28-28, and this is when the game took a turn that no-one saw coming.
In a do-or-die raid for India at the last minute of game time, Pawan was been dashed out. So, it was meant to be that only Iran will get a point in defence, thereby taking the lead over India. But, Pawan contested the point stating that he went out of bounds without any touch, which meant that India might also have to get a few points as Iran’s defenders also went out with him.
Initially, Iran was awarded a point for their efforts to stop Pawan. However, the Indian contingent, including players and officials, began arguing with the on-court umpire and the TV officials. Upon continued deliberation, the referees took to the table to review the decision.
The point of contention that sparked the whole event was the change of rule.
Now in this situation, as per the old rule, India should get four (or five here) points. But, the new rule will give a point each to both teams as one Iran defender went out of the line (self-out).
After a prolonged delay, the ruling was once again finally changed in India’s favour. And upon this, the Iranian team sat down in the middle of the court in protest.
But, after continued conversations among the coaches, players and staff of both teams with the referees, a consensus was reached. The game continued with India receiving three points while Iran received one, a result derived from a mix of both the old and new rule.
But alas, the Iranians could not recover from the deficit and hence the match ended with India emerging as the victors, finally exacting revenge on the same side that had denied them of glory in the 2018 Asian Games.
Earlier, the women’s kabaddi team helped India reach the magical figure of 100 medals, after it defeated Chinese Taipei 26-25 in a thrilling final to clinch gold.
The medal takes India’s total tally to 103 medals, well past their initial goal of 100 medals, and India will stay fourth in the overall medal standings.
India at Asian Games: FULL COVERAGE | MEDAL TALLY | RESULTS | SCHEDULE