Asian Games: India women retain Kabaddi gold with 37-34 win over Iran
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Tokai: India’s women’s kabaddi team defended its Asian Games title with a hard-fought 37-34 victory over an impressive Iran in the final at the Tokai Citizen Gymnasium here on Saturday.
The win secured India’s fourth women’s kabaddi gold medal in Asian Games history and marked the third gold medal for the Indian contingent at the ongoing Asian Games 2026. Iran, the 2018 champions, pushed the defending champions all the way in a closely contested final.
India held the advantage for most of the match and went into the half-time break with a 22-16 lead. Iran responded strongly after the interval, scoring 18 points to India’s 15 in the second half, but the Indian team held its nerve to seal the 37-34 victory.
The final began on an even note, with the teams tied 5-5 after four minutes. Iran then moved ahead 6-5 after a successful super ankle hold on India’s Sanju.
The teams remained closely matched in the following minutes, with Pooja contributing a point as Iran was reduced to one player. India then secured the first all-out when Bhavna Devi tackled the Iranian raider to put her side 13-10 ahead.
Nikita followed with a multi-point raid to extend India’s lead to 15-10, before Sanju Devi added three points through a bonus and two more points. India went into the break with a 22-16 advantage.
The second half continued to produce intense exchanges in both raids and defence. Iran managed to cut the deficit to three points before India, reduced to two players on the mat, produced a crucial tackle to move 25-20 ahead with 10 minutes remaining.
Iran continued to fight back, with Zahra Karimi making important tackles to prevent India from pulling away. Iran eventually inflicted an all-out on India, with Madadi scoring two points to reduce the deficit to 27-26 with eight minutes left on the clock.
Sanju responded with another two-point raid to help India restore a six-point cushion at 34-28. Pooja then added another point as India maintained its composure in the closing stages to secure the 37-34 victory and retain the Asian Games women’s kabaddi title.
With IANS inputs