Media365
India made history by defeating Uganda 35-15 in the final to win the inaugural women’s Commonwealth Kabaddi Championship in Ahmedabad on Saturday. Led by captain Nidhi Sharma, the team completed a perfect campaign, winning all six matches without a defeat to lift the trophy.Sakshi was India’s top scorer in the final, collecting nine raid points from 10 attempts, including two bonus points. She scored seven points in the first half alone. Anu contributed six raid points, while captain Nidhi added five.Defenders Ritu and Suman also played a key role, earning four tackle points each.India started strongly and led 7-3 with 10 minutes left in the first half. They then increased the pressure, scoring 15 points against Uganda’s four to take a commanding 22-7 lead at the break. India’s raiders remained successful throughout the first half, while Uganda struggled to stop them.Uganda put up a better fight after the break, scoring seven raid points compared to India’s six. However, India’s second All-Out with less than 10 minutes remaining made the result almost certain.Nakayongo Shirat was Uganda’s best performer with 11 points, but her efforts were not enough to challenge India.
Sakshi praises team effort
After the win, Sakshi expressed her happiness and spoke about the importance of the tournament for the sport.She said, “I’m feeling great that I could score 9 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 from last year. I want to thank AKFI for organising such a wonderful championship.”Sakshi finished the tournament with 52 points in six matches and was named India’s standout performer in the final.India began their campaign with a 73-13 win over Malaysia and went on to beat Singapore, Uganda and Nigeria in the group stage.They then defeated Sri Lanka in the semifinal before beating Uganda in the final to become the first women’s champions of the competition.
