Young wrestling prodigy Naveen added to India's tally on the medals table with a brilliantly won gold, that too against Pakistani wrestler Muhammad Sharif Tahirat at the Commonwealth Games (CWG) 2022 in Birmingham on Saturday, August 6. It was India's sixth gold in wrestling, coming in the 74kg freestyle wrestling category, and after his bout, the teen star felt very proud at this achievement, especially against an opponent from Pakistan.
"I played with a free mind. When I got to know that I would face Pakistan in the final, I wanted to win India gold. So, I played with high intensity," said Naveen.
The 19-year-old, who was making his CWG debut at the ongoing games, won three of his bouts by technical superiority and fell just a point short of making it four in the final. He was more speedy than his Pakistani counterpart and used it to his advantage on multiple occasions.
Speaking about the final bout against Tahir, Naveen was confident in himself and went out with victory in his mind.
"When I got to know I will be facing a wrestler from Pakistan, I wanted to win. Even Deepak Punia defeated a Pakistan wrestler to win gold. So it was double delight for India," he Naveen.
When asked about his preparations for his final, the Indian wrestling star said that he had trained properly ahead of the challenging competition, and all of his plans came to fruition while his performance in the bout was commendable as well. "I trained very well. And according to the training I had undergone, I fought well in the bout," said Naveen.
With Naveen's win, the Indian wrestling contingent made it 12 out of 12 with six of the medals being gold.
