- By Vishal Pushkar
- Sat, 07 Oct 2023 04:15 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
The Indian men's kabaddi team reclaimed its Asian Games title after a contentious final that was temporarily suspended due to disputes, ultimately resulting in a 33-29 victory over defending champions Iran.
In a thrilling and closely contested final, the men's kabaddi match saw both India and Iran tied at 28-28 with just over a minute left on the clock. However, controversy arose in the final minute when Indian captain Pawan Sehrawat went for a do-or-die raid.
Timeline Of Events Explained:
During the raid, Sehrawat entered the lobby (out of bounds) without making contact with any defender. Nevertheless, Amirhossein Bastami and three other Iranian defenders rushed toward Sehrawat in an attempt to push him out, causing confusion and chaos. There was uncertainty about whether Sehrawat had been successfully tackled and which rule should be applied—the old one or the new one.
Under the new rule, Sehrawat would have been deemed out, but the old rule would have considered Sehrawat and all the Iranians who followed him to be out, resulting in India earning four points and Iran one.
As officials wavered between ruling in favor of India and Iran, both teams' players sat on the court in protest—an unprecedented scene in kabaddi history. After extensive deliberation, discussion, and arguments from both sides, and with the match temporarily suspended, the officials ultimately ruled in favor of India, giving them the gold medal with a scoreline of 32-29.
The Indian men's kabaddi team had won seven consecutive gold medals at the Asian Games before suffering a shock semifinal loss to Iran five years ago in Jakarta.