Archive · 29 Sep 2026
Challenging Asian Games Wrestling Draws Test India’s Medal Hopes
India’s wrestlers have learned who they may face at the 2026 Asian Games.
Sujeet Kalkal is in the 65kg event and could meet Olympic champion Kotaro Kiyooka before the final.
He may first face Iran’s Abbas Ebrahimzadeh in the quarterfinals.
Antim Panghal could wrestle China’s Zhang Jin in the semifinals.
Antim has beaten Zhang in both of their earlier meetings.
Aman Sehrawat may face another Olympic medallist in his first match.
He could then meet wrestlers from Kazakhstan and Iran if he keeps winning.
Other Indian wrestlers, including Deepak Punia and Nisha Dahiya, also face strong opponents.
Every weight category will be completed on the same day, making mistakes especially costly.
Sujeet Kalkal could face Iran’s Abbas Ebrahimzadeh and Japan’s Olympic champion Kotaro Kiyooka in the 65kg event.
Antim Panghal may meet China’s Zhang Jin in the 53kg semifinals after winning both of their previous bouts.
Aman Sehrawat could face Olympic bronze medallist Gulomjon Abdullaev or Japan’s Yamato Ogawa in the 57kg opening round.
India’s wider contingent includes medal contenders such as Deepak Punia, Nisha Dahiya, Sunil Kumar and Nitesh Siwach.
Each wrestling weight category will be completed in one day, with qualification rounds, semifinals and medal bouts held together.
- Who
- Indian wrestlers including Sujeet Kalkal, Antim Panghal, Aman Sehrawat, Deepak Punia, Nisha Dahiya, Sunil Kumar and Nitesh Siwach.
- What
- India’s wrestling contingent has received challenging draws for the 2026 Asian Games.
- When
- Ahead of the 2026 Asian Games wrestling programme; the articles do not provide specific competition dates.
- Where
- At the 2026 Asian Games in Japan.
- Why
- The draws could put Indian medal contenders against Olympic medallists, an Olympic champion and other leading Asian wrestlers early in the competition.
- Event
- 2026 Asian Games
- Sport
- Wrestling
- Competition format
- Each weight category will be completed in one day, including qualification rounds, semifinals and medal bouts.
- Sujeet Kalkal
- The 23-year-old U-23 world champion is in the 65kg category and could meet Kotaro Kiyooka in the semifinals.
- Antim Panghal
- The 53kg wrestler is in the same half of the draw as China’s Zhang Jin.
- Aman Sehrawat
- The 2024 Olympic bronze medallist could face Gulomjon Abdullaev or Yamato Ogawa in the opening round.
- India’s previous result
- India won six wrestling medals at the 2022 Asian Games: one silver and five bronze.
