Sonali Vishnu Shingate and Sanju Devi dazzled in the raids, while Ritu Negi shone in defence; their collective brilliance set the tone as defending champions India dominated their opening match of the 2nd Women’s Kabaddi World Cup in Dhaka on Tuesday, beating Thailand by 65-20 points.
Tuesday at the Shaheed Suhrawardi Indoor Stadium in Mirpur, the global kabaddi powerhouse took complete control of the first match of the second day right from the very beginning, racing to a 41-6 lead in the first half. With such a commanding advantage, India shifted focus to giving their bench players valuable time on the mat.
Thailand, semifinalists in the previous edition, showed some resistance after the break, but it was far from enough. In the second half, India scored 24 points, while Thailand managed 14.
Thailand won the toss and opted for the opening raid. However, India struck immediately, tackling Diana Deesalarm within just seven seconds. By the sixth minute, India had already inflicted the first all-out, taking a 15-3 lead. They repeated the feat in the ninth minute to extend their advantage to 26-3. Within 14 minutes, India had all-outed Thailand for the third time, leaving no doubt about their authority.
The domination continued after the interval -- within five minutes of the second half, India secured the fourth all-out and pocketed a bonus point. With five minutes remaining, they inflicted a fifth all-out to cap off a comprehensive victory.
India captain Ritu Negi was pleased with such a cruising victory to start the tournament.
“It feels great to start the tournament with such a big win. I want to thank the organisers for hosting this World Cup so smoothly and providing such a wonderful venue,” she said after the win.
India will be facing Bangladesh next, but Negi was confident of another good show against the hosts.
“We came here with very strong preparation. We have worked hard. In terms of pressure -- we have already played many matches. Bangladesh are the hosts, and the crowd will support them, but we arrived fully prepared. We are very confident,” she said.
“As for our goal, we are the champions of the first-ever Women’s Kabaddi World Cup. We have come here with big expectations and have worked tirelessly for this tournament. Our hope is to return home as champions again.
“At the Asian Games we had a tough contest against Chinese Taipei. I think they are one of the contenders for the title here as well. Iran are also a strong side. But we have prepared thoroughly,” the 33-year-old added.
