The Indian men's kabaddi team registered their third successive win at the Asian Kabaddi Championship 2023 as they scored a dominant 62-17 victory over Japan in Busan, South Korea on Wednesday.
Indian raiders Aslam Inamdar, who made his India debut on Tuesday, and Sachin scored a Super 10 each to guide the team to victory.
The most successful team at the tournament with 10 titles, India are favourites to triumph in this edition too. On the opening day of the continental event on Tuesday, India defeated hosts Korea 76-13 and scored a 53-19 win over the Chinese Taipei.
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Against Japan, India were quick off the blocks and inflicted an all-out on their rivals in the fourth minute itself. They raced to a 18-0 lead before Japan got onto the scoreboard in the eighth minute with the help of a bonus point. Japan were all-out six times, three in each half, over the match duration of 40 minutes.
Resuming at 32-6 after half-time, India continued to put the pressure on Japan in the second half as well. Japan, who had also won their two matches on Tuesday, produced a three-point raid in the last seconds of the match, but it was too little too late as India coasted to victory.
India face their biggest test, however, on Thursday as they take on Asian Games champions Iran.
Since the sport was introduced as a medal event in 1990, the 2018 Asian Games was the first time that the Indian kabaddi team had been unable to clinch a gold. They had suffered a shock defeat to Iran in the semi-finals and had to settle for a bronze, while Iran won the gold and South Korea claimed the silver.
The Indian think-tank will get a first-look at the Iran team ahead of the Asian Games, which will be held in Hangzhou, China in September-October, during the Asian Championships.
Iran are also unbeaten in the tournament so far. They beat Korea 72-17 and defeated Hong Kong 60-31 on Wednesday, following the 52-28 win over the Chinese Taipei on Tuesday.
The Asian Kabaddi Championships 2023 features six teams -- India, Iran, Japan, Korea, Chinese Taipei and Hong Kong. After a round-robin stage, the top two teams will face-off in the final on Friday.
Where to watch Asian Kabaddi Championship 2023 in India?
There is no broadcast of the tournament in India but the viewers in India watch the live action on the official YouTube channel of the tournament.
India v Iran is scheduled for a 10:30 am IST start.
Indian men's squad for the Asian Kabaddi Championship 2023
Indian men's squad: Arjun Deshwal, Naveen Kumar, Sachin, Aslam Inamdar, Mohit Goyat, Sunil Kumar, Parvesh Bhainswal, Nitin Rawal, Nitesh Kumar, Surjeet Singh, Vishal Bhardwaj, Pawan Sehrawat
Stand-by players: Vijay Malik, Shubham Shinde
Coaches: Ashan Kumar, Sanjeev Kumar
Manager: Bhaskaran Edachery
