The England men team and Indian eves became the first teams to reach the finals of Dr BR Ambedkar 6th World Cup Kabaddi 2016. The two semi finals (one each from men and women section) were held in the Multipurpose Sports Stadium of village Mehraj in Bathinda district today. In the first semi final of the day, that was played between Iran and England from men section, the European team defeated Iran by 41-39, while the first semi final of women section, Indian eves defeated New Zealand with a big margin of 41-19. This is the fourth time that the Indian eves would be playing the finals of this mega sporting tourney.The first semi final of the day was played between Iran and England. It was for the first time in the history of World Cup Kabaddi that the decision was taken with the help of a tie breaker as the score remained tied at the end of finishing time. Cabinet Minister and Chairman of Punjab Kabaddi Association, Mr Sikarndar Singh Maluka was the chief guest for today’s matches.
While speaking on the occasion, Mr Maluka said that it was only due to the efforts of Shiromani Akali Dal-Bharatiya Janta Party led Punjab government that our traditional sport of Kabaddi has become International as several countries such as Kenya, Sierra Leone, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, Iran and others are competing in this mega sporting tourney. He also thanked Chief Minister Mr Parkash Singh Badal and Deputy CM Mr Sukhbir Singh Badal for choosing Mehraj, one of the largest villages of the country, as the venue for the World Cup Kabaddi matches.In first semi final match of the day, that was played between Iran and England, the European team defeated Iran with a thin margin of 41-39. Stopper Sandeep Singh Sandhu “Nangal Ambian” was the star of the match, who secured 14 points for his team, which led to their entry into the finals. For England, raiders Narwinder, Avtar and Amandeep scored 12, 4 and 3 points respectively, while stoppers Sandeep Singh Sandhu “Nangal Ambian” secured 14 points and Jagtar and Amandeep Uppal secured 5 and 2 points respectively. Similarly, for Iran, raiders Mayean, Behman Javedi and Payman scored 6, 5 and 3 points respectively while stoppers Hamid, Majtaba and Ali Safari secured 7, 6 and 5 points for their team.
In the second semi final of the day, Indian eves defeated New Zealand by a big margin of 41-19. For India, raiders Karmi and Ram Bateri scored 7 and 5 points respectively, while Nona and Sukhi scored 3 points each. Stoppers Randeep, Khushboo and Sukhdeep secured 5, 3 and 2 points respectively. For the Kiwis, Persy scored 8 points while Elizabeth Motu and Jayela scored 3 points each and stoppers Tayla Ford and Antelina secured 2 and 1 point.Prominent among those present on the occasion included Zila Parishad Chairman Mr Gurpreet Singh Maluka, Punjab Kabaddi Association Senior Vice President Mr Tajinder Singh Middukhera, DC Mr Ghanshyam Thori, SSP Mr Swapan Sharma, Director Sports Punjab Mr Rahul Gupta, ADC Mr Rahul Chaba, , Deputy Director Sports Department Mr Rupinder Ravi, Assistant Director Sports Department Mr Kartar Singh Sehambay, besides several others.