Hangzhou [China], October 4 : The Indian women's kabaddi team on Wednesday assured a medal in the event after registering a thumping 54-22 win over Thailand in Hangzhou Asian Games.
The victory helped India, champions in 2010 and 2014 and runners-up in 2018, finish Group A with five points from three matches and book their place in the semifinals. The losing semifinalists will be awarded bronze medals in kabaddi.
India's Pushpa Rana, Nidhi Sharma, and Pooja Hathwala got the squad off to a strong start against Thailand by cutting raids. In the meantime, the Indian defence was occupied by Thai raiders and prevented easy bonus points.
In the first half, India outscored Thailand 32-9 and forced three all-outs. After the interval, Thailand improved and put India's defence to the test. Particularly Saowapa Chuekhaow plagued the Indian defence and also scored a great raid.
Defenders from India quickly stood up and stopped Thailand from scoring. The raiders, however, led by Nidhi Sharma, continued to score easily and won the kabaddi match by a score of 32.
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