Commonwealth Kabaddi Championship 2026: India Women Reach Semifinal as Both Teams Beat Nigeria

Deep Brahma

4 hours ago

2 min read

Ahmedabad, October 26: India’s men’s and women’s kabaddi teams both registered convincing victories over Nigeria at the inaugural Commonwealth Kabaddi Championship 2026 at the Veer Savarkar Sports Complex on Monday. The women’s team won 38-10 to confirm their place in the semifinals, while the men followed with a 50-23 victory. It was the fourth win of the championship for both Indian sides.

The women’s team controlled their contest from the beginning and built a commanding 24-6 lead by half-time. They continued to maintain the pressure after the break and added another 14 points to complete a comfortable 38-10 win and secure their place in the last four.

Anu led India’s attack with 11 raid points from 17 raids, while Sakshi contributed four raid points and captain Nidhi Sharma added two. India were equally effective in defence, with Sabhai Gadhavi collecting three tackle points, while Priya and Ritu finished with two each.

For Nigeria, Robert Moses was the leading raider with six points, while Bassey Edet added two. Dennis Udeme secured Nigeria’s only tackle point as the Indian raiders remained in control for most of the match.

India’s men then completed a successful day by defeating Nigeria 50-23. They made a strong start and took a 25-7 lead into half-time before maintaining their advantage through the second half. India finished the contest ahead on both raid points, with 31, and tackle points, with seven.

Sachin was India’s leading raider with 12 points, while Aditya Shinde contributed 11. Pankaj Mohite added eight raid points and two tackle points, and Surjeet Narwal led the defensive effort with four tackle points.

Nigeria improved after the break and scored 16 points in the second half, but India’s first-half advantage was too large to overcome. Edem Wisdom Ita led Nigeria with eight raid points, while Ekpe Victory Emmanuel collected six points, including five raid points and one tackle point. Izu Prince Udah added five raid points.

The results extended India’s strong start to the inaugural championship, with both teams now recording four victories. The women will face the second-placed team from Group B in the semifinal on Friday, October 30, while the men return to action against Tanzania on Tuesday, October 27.