Indian wrestler Reetika Hooda put up a valiant fight in her quarterfinal bout of the 76kg freestyle event against top-seeded Aiperi Medet Kyzy of Kyrgyzstan but lost the contest despite the scores being 1-1.
Reetika is making her Olympics debut and is the first Indian woman to enter the heavyweight category at the Summer Games. She displayed her talent and power by winning the first round at the Games by technical superiority but went down in the next to the World Championships silver medallist Aiperi.
Despite the score being 1-1 level, the 21-year-old Indian lost the match due to the countback rule. According to the rule, Aiperi scored the last points of the bout and was adjudged the winner of it.
Reetika led the contest with a slender margin of 1-0 after the first period of three minutes. She secured the point via passivity when the Kyrgyz grappler was put on the activity clock of 30 seconds. This was not easy for the Indian as she had to defend a leg takedown during her opponent's passivity warning.
In the next period, both the grapplers opted for caution before Reetika was given a passivity warning and she could not convert a point despite her strong attacks. With the score being 1-1 and Aiperi being the last one to score, the Indian grappler needed another point from somewhere. She did give her best and even got a takedown but she could not convert it into a point as her opponent fended to take the bout.
Notably, it is not over for Reetika at the Games as she will get a chance for a bronze medal via a repechage if the top-seeded qualifies for the final. Aiperi's semifinal is scheduled to take place around 10:30 PM IST today and if she defeats USA's Kennedy Blades, Reetika will play in the repechage against China's Juan Wang for a chance of a bronze medal. Reetika will hope that the fortunes stay with her and she stays in contention for a medal.
