India Dominate U23 Asian Wrestling Championships as Akshay, Vicky and Women Grapplers Shine in Vietnam

India produced a commanding display at the U23 Asian Wrestling Championships in Da Nang, Vietnam, as the country’s young wrestlers delivered an impressive medal rush led by freestyle gold medallists Akshay T Dhere and Vicky.

The day quickly turned into one of India’s strongest performances of the tournament, with both men’s freestyle wrestlers and women grapplers dominating across multiple weight categories to underline the growing depth in Indian wrestling. Akshay T Dhere opened India’s gold medal surge in the men’s 57kg freestyle category.

Facing Kazakhstan’s Yelaman Amangeldi in the final, Akshay produced a disciplined and tactical performance to secure a hard-fought 4-2 victory. The bout remained closely contested throughout, but Akshay managed key scoring moments under pressure while maintaining defensive control in the closing stages. His gold medal was particularly significant because of the level of competition traditionally present in Asian lightweight freestyle wrestling, where Central Asian nations remain among the strongest globally.

Soon after Akshay’s triumph, Vicky doubled India’s celebrations with gold in the men’s 97kg freestyle division. In one of the most entertaining finals of the day, Vicky defeated Uzbekistan’s Sherzod Poyonov 7-5 in a high-scoring contest. Unlike Akshay’s tactical battle, the 97kg final saw constant momentum shifts with both wrestlers aggressively searching for scoring opportunities. Vicky ultimately held his nerve during the decisive exchanges to secure the gold medal.

The victory highlighted India’s improving strength in heavier freestyle categories, an area where the country has steadily progressed over recent years. India’s women wrestlers ensured the momentum continued throughout the day. Muskan clinched gold in the 53kg category after defeating Vietnam’s Thi My Linh Nguyen 6-2 in the final.

Muskan controlled the contest effectively, maintaining positional dominance and scoring consistently through controlled attacks. In the 57kg division, Tapsya delivered one of the most dominant performances of the day. Leading 4-0 against Kazakhstan’s Altyn Shagayeva, Tapsya secured victory by fall, ending the bout emphatically and adding another gold medal to India’s tally.

India’s medal momentum continued through Bhagyashree H Fand in the women’s 62kg category. Bhagyashree produced a technically strong performance to blank Kyrgyzstan’s Tynys Dubek 4-0 in the final and secure gold. Her defensive solidity and tactical discipline ensured complete control throughout the bout.

Meanwhile, Pulkit added further success in the 65kg category with impressive victories over opponents from Kyrgyzstan and Mongolia. Pulkit registered 4-0 and 4-1 wins respectively, continuing India’s dominance across multiple weight divisions.

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The only narrow disappointment among the finals came in the women’s 72kg division. Amruta Shashikant Pujari fought strongly but eventually settled for silver after a close 2-4 defeat against Mongolia’s Odgerel Edene Ochir. Despite missing gold, Amruta’s run to the final still contributed significantly to India’s overall medal tally and reinforced the depth within the women’s wrestling programme.

Following the performances, Sanjay Singh praised the squad for its dominant showing. The Wrestling Federation of India president highlighted the tactical discipline shown by Akshay and Vicky while also commending the women wrestlers for their resilience and consistency across the competition.

Importantly, the results once again reflected India’s growing strength at the junior and U23 levels a critical factor for long-term international success.

The performances in Vietnam continue a broader trend in Indian wrestling development. Over the last decade, India has consistently built strong age-group systems capable of producing technically polished wrestlers ready for international competition. The U23 category is especially important because it often serves as the transition stage between junior success and senior-level international wrestling. Results at this level frequently indicate the future strength of a country’s senior programme.

For India, the emergence of wrestlers like Akshay, Vicky, Muskan and Tapsya offers another encouraging sign ahead of the next Olympic cycle.

More importantly, the victories demonstrated that India’s wrestling pipeline is no longer dependent on isolated stars alone. Depth across multiple categories is steadily improving — and that may ultimately become the country’s biggest strength on the international stage.