UP Dominators beat Tiigers of Mumbai Dangal 7-2 in PWL

Noida, Jan 17 (PTI) UP Dominators produced a dominant performance to register a convincing 7–2 win over Tiigers of Mumbai Dangals in a Pro Wrestling League match here on Saturday.

Two-time U20 World Champion Antim Panghal once again underlined her stature in the women's 53 kg contest with a commanding win that effectively sealed the contest for UP.

Khelo India University Games gold medallist Jaspooran Singh was named player of the match for his composed heavyweight performance, while Paris 2024 bronze medallist Aman Sehrawat earned the fighter of the match award for his bright moment for Tiigers of Mumbai Dangals.

UP Dominators set the tone right from the opening bout as Jasporan Singh controlled a tactical 125kg contest against Oleksandr Khotsianivskyi, staying active to draw activity points and adding a decisive push-out for a narrow 3–1 win.

The early advantage was consolidated in the 76kg women's bout, where UP's Mansi Lather edged past Jyoti Berwal 2–1 through superior movement and positional awareness.

Momentum continued firmly in UP's favour when Abhimanyu Mandwal delivered a composed 4–0 shutout in the 74kg men's bout, before Vishal Kali Raman from UP Dominators showed composure under pressure to win a tight 3–2 contest in the 65kg category, extending the lead to 4–0.

Tiigers of Mumbai Dangals finally found a response through skipper Sehrawat, who showcased his class and experience with a dominant technical superiority win over Sagar Sharma to pull one point back for his team. However, that resistance was short-lived as Antim took control in the 53kg women's bout, accelerating in the second period with relentless exposure sequences to secure victory by technical superiority and effectively clinch the match and two points for UP Dominators.

Nisha Dahiya followed up with an emphatic fall win in the next bout, while Tapsya Gahlawat delivered a comprehensive 9–0 win to stretch the margin further.

Mumbai closed the night with a consolation win in the 86kg men's bout, where Mukul Dahiya defeated Mykhailov Vasyl 15–2.

Antim, captain of the winning UP Dominators said, "My bout went well, my opponent was strong, and it was a good contest. I executed my preparation exactly as planned, though there's always room to improve after reviewing the bouts. As team captain, we were prepared for any toss outcome. Every player fought well, adapted smartly, and the team delivered a solid performance to secure the win." Speaking at the post match press conference, Tiigers of Mumbai Dangals captain Sehrawat said, "We came into the match with clear expectations, and individually my bout went as planned. As a team, however, we couldn’t perform to the level we had targeted.

"It was our opening game and the pressure of a big crowd played a role. We had strong confidence in our key weight categories, but today wasn't our day. We'll regroup and come back stronger in the next matches." PTI SSC SSC PDS PDS