Sakshi scored nine raid points as India's women completed a six-from-six campaign in Ahmedabad, conceding just one tackle point in the final.
India’s women became the first women’s champions of the inaugural Commonwealth Kabaddi Championship on Saturday, 31 October, beating Uganda 35-15 in the final in Ahmedabad to finish the tournament unbeaten. Sakshi top-scored with nine raid points, and India’s defence gave up so little that Uganda stopped an Indian raider only once in the entire match.
The final at the Veer Savarkar Sports Complex was the second meeting between the sides in the championship. India had already beaten Uganda 41-18 in the group stage, and the rematch was settled even earlier, with India 22-7 up at half-time and two all-outs on the board by the finish.
Sakshi finished with nine raid points from 10 raids, including two bonus points. Seven of those came in the first half, when she was successful in all six of her raids. She was named India’s best player in the final and ended the championship with 52 points from six matches.
Anu Sen added six raid points and captain Nidhi Sharma contributed five, three of them bonus points. In all, India scored 20 raid points and 10 tackle points, and converted three of their four do-or-die raids.
The game turned in the last 10 minutes of the first half. India led only 7-3 at that point, then outscored Uganda 15-4, including an all-out, to go into the break 22-7 ahead. India did not lose a single raid in the first half: Uganda failed with all nine of their tackle attempts, while India’s defenders made six successful tackles of their own.
Uganda’s attack was essentially one player. Nakayongo Shirat made 24 of her team’s 35 raids and scored 11 of their 15 points, including three bonus points. The rest of Uganda’s raiders managed three points between them, and Nalwoga Nahia, who starred in the semi-final, was held to a single point.
Ritu Mitharwal and Suman Sahu anchored India’s defence with four tackle points each, and over the match India tackled Uganda’s raiders 10 times. At the other end, Uganda finished with 14 raid points and just one tackle point. That came from Zalwango Jemima in the second half, the only time Uganda stopped an Indian raider all match.
Uganda did edge India 7-6 on raid points after the interval, and the second half finished 13-8 in India’s favour. But India’s second all-out, with less than 10 minutes to play, removed any doubt about the result.
The title completed a perfect run for India’s women. They opened with a 73-13 win over Malaysia, then beat Singapore 32-16, Uganda 41-18 and Nigeria 38-10 to finish top of Group A. In the semi-final they beat Sri Lanka 39-14 before sealing the trophy against Uganda.
The women’s final was played before the men’s, and India’s men followed by beating Sri Lanka 54-20 to complete a clean sweep of the inaugural titles for the hosts.
Speaking after the final, Sakshi said: “I’m feeling great that I could score nine raid points and help the team win. The atmosphere in the team is euphoric after winning the gold medal, and everyone is very happy.”
“This event was very important for kabaddi, as such international tournaments will help the growth of the sport, and our young players will benefit a lot from this experience. I could see a lot of improvement in other teams compared to last year. I want to thank AKFI for organising such a wonderful championship.” – Sakshi
Nidhi Sharma’s side took the applause of the crowd after the final whistle, the first names on the women’s honours board of a championship that the tournament’s organisers will hope becomes a regular fixture on the international calendar.
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Aditya Shinde's Super 10 and Yogesh Dahiya's High 5 sealed the men's title in Ahmedabad after Sakshi led the women past Uganda 35-15, with both Indian teams unbeaten.
Sakshi and captain Nidhi Sharma powered India into the women's final in Ahmedabad, where they meet Uganda, 23-21 winners over Kenya, on Saturday, 31 October.
India topped their group with six wins from six as Mohite and Aditya Shinde led the raiding. Bangladesh and Kenya also posted huge wins.
