Indian wrestling reached a historic milestone in Astana on Tuesday, with Kajal Dhochak and Neelam Sirohi qualifying for the World Championships finals. For the first time, India will have two women competing for gold at the same edition of the tournament.
Kajal will take on Ukraine's Anastasiya Alpyeyeva in the 76kg final, while Neelam will face Japan's Yui Susaki in the 50kg title bout. Their achievement follows Anshu Malik's breakthrough in 2021, when she became the first Indian woman to reach a World Championships final and won the silver medal.
"Having two Indian women in the World Championships finals is a proud moment for Indian wrestling. Kajal's comeback showed tremendous belief and courage, while Neelam's performance reflected her preparation and composure. Their success is a credit to the wrestlers, their coaches and everyone supporting them. We wish both athletes the very best as they compete for gold," said Sanjay Singh, president of the Wrestling Federation of India.
For 18-year-old Kajal, reaching the final marks a remarkable step up to senior-level competition after winning two U20 world titles. On her senior World Championships debut, she overturned a 1-7 deficit to beat Kyrgyzstan's Aiperi Medet Kyzy 10-7 in the semifinals. Before that, she had defeated Lithuania's Kamile Griskiene Gaucaite and Mongolia's Davaanasan Enkh Amar.
Neelam, 26, booked her place in the final with a 7-3 semifinal victory over Kazakhstan's Zeinep Bayanova. Earlier in the competition, she beat Belarus' Natallia Varakina 6-0 and advanced through the quarterfinals after Russia's Elizaveta Smirnova withdrew because of injury.
Both wrestlers now have the chance to cap a landmark day for Indian women's wrestling by winning world titles.
Elsewhere, Rajnita remains in the hunt for bronze in the 65kg category and will face Japan's Nana Ikehata in the repechage. She began her campaign with an 8-6 victory over 2024 world silver medallist Kateryna Zelenykh before losing to Moldova's Irina Ringaci.
Neha Sharma was eliminated from the 57kg event in the round of 16, while India's Greco-Roman wrestlers finished their campaign without winning a medal.
