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India’s performance at the 2025 Senior World Wrestling Championships in Zagreb showed few signs of recovery following a disappointing Day 1. On the opening day, all four male freestyle wrestlers lost their first matches. Only Mukul Dahiya remained in contention via repechage, as his opponent, Zahid Valencia, advanced. Day 2 brought early disqualification and exits for India.
Aman Sehrawat disqualified from World Wrestling Championship
One of the biggest setbacks on Day 2 came when Aman Sehrawat, the Paris Olympics bronze medallist in men’s freestyle 57 kg, was disqualified before his first bout. He exceeded the weight limit by 1.7 kilograms and therefore was forced to forfeit. He fell sick just before the weigh-in, which affected his ability to cut weight.
Mukul Dahiya finishes fifth after bronze match loss at World Wrestling Championship
Mukul Dahiya reached the bronze medal match in the men’s 86 kg class. On Day 1, he lost to Zahid Valencia of the USA by technical superiority (0-10), but as Valencia advanced, Dahiya got a repechage opportunity. On Day 2, he won through his repechage matches, including a win by technical superiority, to earn a shot at bronze.
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In the bronze medal match, Mukul faced Kamran Ghasempour of Iran and lost 0-10 by technical superiority, which placed him fifth. He was the only Indian wrestler to reach a medal-deciding match by the end of Day 2.
Deepak Punia and others exit early at World Wrestling Championship
Deepak Punia, in the 92 kg category, also competed on Day 2. He won his opening match but lost in the next round to Osman Nurmagomedov of Azerbaijan by a narrow margin (4-3). While Nurmagomedov did not reach the finals, Punia had no repechage match and was eliminated.
Other Indian wrestlers like Amit (79 kg) and Vikash Kumar (74 kg) lost in their early matches and were knocked out without moving into repechage. As of the end of Day 2, no Indian wrestler is left with a repechage opportunity.
