Tokyo Olympics: Bajarang Punia loses to Haji Aliyev in semis, to play for Bronze
Tokyo: Wrestler Bajarang Punia lost to Azerbaijan's Haji Aliyev 5-12 in the men's freestyle 65 kg category semifinal bout at the Tokyo Olympics.
Haji Aliyev dominated the mat from the first round. Haji Aliyev constantly pinned Bajarang Punia through his legs in the second round and took a good 7-point lead over the opponent. Now, Bajarang will compete for Bronze medal against Kazakhstan's Daulet Niyazbekov tomorrow.
Earlier, Bajrang pinned down his opponent Iran's Morteza Ghiasi in the quarterfinal at the Makuhari Messe Hall A to enter the semifinals.
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Bajrang won Silver at the 2019 World Wrestling Championships. After that Silver Medal, he claimed World No. 1 in the 65 kg category. He won Bronze for the second time at a World Championship, thereby qualifying India for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics in the 65 kg freestyle wrestling event.
Haji Aliyev competed in the 57 kg division at the 2016 Rio Olympics and won the bronze medal after beating Vladimir Dubov of Bulgaria. He was the flag bearer for Azerbaijan during the closing ceremonies.
