Panchkula, January 17, 2019: After losing their opening matches UP Dangal takes on Delhi Sultans in the next round of Pro Wrestling League (PWL) Season 4 at the Tau Devi Lal Indoor Stadium in Panchkula on Friday.
Both teams will be hugely dependent on their foreign recruits and both teams have named two foreign wrestlers as their icon player. UP has named last year’s world champion Vanesa Kaladzinskaya as their icon player whereas Delhi has named last year’s world championships silver medalist Khetik Tsabolov as their top wrestler.
All eyes will also be on Sakshi Malik’s clash with Navjot Kaur in this match after both these wrestlers’ categories were blocked in the previous encounter. Navjot is the first Indian female wrestler to win a gold at the Asian Championships whereas Sakshi is the first and only Indian to win an Olympic medal. They have never faced each other so far in their career as they fought in different weight categories. But Navjot has reduced weight now and because of the different weight structure in PWL, there is the possibility of seeing the Asian champion taking on the Olympic champion.
The other two exciting encounters on the cards are in the women’s 76 kg where Estonian Epp Mae takes on the European U23 champion from Ukraine Shustovo Anastasia and local boys Naveen takes on Pankaj in the men’s 57 kg category. Though Naveen went down to Ravi in his last bout, the UP wrestler’s form gives him a definite edge over Pankaj tomorrow.
UP Dangal co-owner Sunny Katiyal said: “Though I am a little disappointed with the outcome of our clash against Haryana Hammers, I am sure that my team will not let the supporters down in the second game against Delhi.”
Delhi team coach Sujeet Maan, on the other hand, is determined to beat UP and said, “Sakshi’s presence will be a big boost to the team and the presence of Khetik and the other foreigners will definitely give us an edge in the match.”
Complete squads :
| UP Dangal | |||
| Sr. No | Name | Category | Nationality |
| 1 | Naveen | 57 Kg (Male) | India |
| 2 | Vanesa Kaladzinskaya | 53 Kg (Female) | Bulgaria |
| 3 | Pankaj Rana | 65kg (Male) | India |
| 4 | Sarita | 57kg (Female) | India |
| 5 | Jitender | 74kg (Male) | India |
| 6 | Navjot Kaur | 62kg (Female) | India |
| 7 | Irakli Misituri | 86kg (Male) | Georgia |
| 8 | Epp Mae | 76kg (Female) | Estonia |
| 9 | Georgi Sakandelidze | 125 kg (Male) | Georgia |
| Delhi Sultans | |||
| Sr.
No |
Name | Category | Nationality |
| 1 | Pankaj | 57 Kg (Male) | India |
| 2 | Pinki | 53 Kg (Female) | India |
| 3 | Kviatkovski Andrey | 65kg (Male) | Ukraine |
| 4 | Katherina Zhydachivska | 57kg (Female) | Romania |
| 5 | Khetik Tsabolov | 74kg (Male) | Russia |
| 6 | Sakshi Malik | 62kg (Female) | India |
| 7 | Praveen | 86kg (Male) | India |
| 8 | Shustova Anastasia | 76kg (Female) | Ukraine |
| 9 | Satender Malik | 125 kg (Male) | India |