Paris: Indian wrestler Vinesh Phogat caused a major upset by defeating the world’s number one and four-time world champion, Yui Susaki of Japan, in the first round of the women’s 50kg category at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Entering the tournament unseeded, Vinesh faced the top-seeded Susaki, who had an undefeated international record. However, Vinesh implemented her strategy flawlessly to overcome the Japanese wrestler.
The match ended with Vinesh defeating Susaki 3-2 in a largely passive bout, with both competitors maintaining a solid defence. Initially, both wrestlers were cautious, assessing each other. Ninety seconds into the first round, Vinesh received a passivity warning and was compelled to attack Susaki. Despite this, Susaki’s defence was impenetrable, and Vinesh gave up the first point.
As the first round neared its end, Susaki seized Vinesh’s leg, but the Indian wrestler managed to defend successfully and closed the round. Susaki increased her aggression in the second round, but Vinesh matched her defensively.
With two minutes remaining, Vinesh received another passivity warning from the referee and once again failed to launch an attack, yielding another point to Susaki. Trailing 0-2 with less than a minute left, Vinesh Phogat shifted the momentum in the final moments by taking Susaki down to the mat, earning two points and levelling the score at 2-2.
Susaki contested the call and lost, resulting in a final score of 3-2 in favour of Vinesh Phogat. This victory marked Vinesh as the first wrestler to defeat Susaki on an international stage. She secured her spot in the quarter-finals and is set to compete against Oksana Livach of Ukraine in the following round.
