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Veteran Indian kabaddi player Ritu Negi dedicated the women's kabaddi team's Asian Games gold medal to her countrymen, crediting their support, love and blessings after India successfully defended its title with a 37-34 victory over Iran in a thrilling final on Saturday.
Negi, an Arjuna Awardee and former India captain, was part of the Indian team that held its nerve against a determined Iranian side to clinch India's third gold medal of the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games. "I dedicate this medal to my countrymen. I dedicate this medal to their support, love, family and coaches because we are here with their support, cooperation, love and blessings," Negi told ANI after the victory. The Indian team entered the final as defending champions and faced a strong challenge from Iran before eventually securing a 37-34 win. With the match entering its decisive stages, Iran continued to search for points and threatened to close the gap. However, India's defence produced a crucial tackle on Aynaz with a minute remaining, helping the team preserve its advantage and seal the gold. Speaking about the significance of retaining the title, Negi said the team felt a responsibility to maintain the gold medal won at the previous Asian Games. "We needed the gold medal. More than that, we took the gold medal last time as well. So, it was our responsibility to maintain the gold medal," she said. India had already faced Iran in the pool stage and secured a 14-point victory, but Negi acknowledged that the final presented a different challenge. "We had already played a match against Iran in the pool. We had won the match with 14 points. We thought that Chinese Taipei could make it to the finals. But it didn't happen. Iran played very well against Chinese Taipei. They lost the match with 4 points. But we thought that Chinese Taipei could make it to the finals. We had won the match against Chinese Taipei with 1 point in the last Asian Games. Chinese Taipei was also in the finals in last year's World Cup," said Negi. The gold medal marked India's successful defence of the women's kabaddi title won at the Hangzhou Asian Games. Sanju Devi was among India's standout performers throughout the tournament and once again contributed to the team's effort in the final. The victory took India's medal tally to 27 at the Aichi-Nagoya Games, including three gold, 11 silver and 13 bronze medals. India's men's kabaddi team will also face Iran in the men's gold medal match later on Saturday, with the country aiming to add another gold to its tally. (ANI)
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