India’s wrestling team for the Asian Games 2026 in Aichi-Nagoya isn’t the same squad that qualified through the national trials back in May.
Between then and now, doping controversies have forced the federation to rework the roster three times over – and the version heading to Japan reflects all of that upheaval.
The Full Squad Travelling to Japan
India has named a 15-member wrestling contingent for the Games, running September 19 to October 4, with the wrestling competition itself scheduled from September 30 to October 3.
Women
Dipanshi (50kg), Antim Panghal (53kg), Manisha Bhanwala (57kg), Mansi Ahlawat (62kg), Nisha Dahiya (68kg), Priya Malik (76kg)
Men’s Freestyle
Aman Sehrawat (57kg), Sujeet Kalkal (65kg), Sagar Jaglan (74kg), Deepak Punia (97kg), Rajat Ruhal (125kg)
Men’s Greco-Roman
Sumit Dalal (60kg), Aman (77kg), Sunil Kumar (87kg), Nitesh Kumar (97kg)
The Headline Names
Olympic bronze medallist Aman Sehrawat leads India’s medal hopes, having won the men’s 57kg freestyle trial back in May by outclassing Rahul Deswal – a result that came three years after his own bronze at the 2023 Hangzhou Asian Games. He’s joined by Antim Panghal, the 2023 Asian Games bronze medallist who secured her spot in the women’s 53kg division by beating Meenakshi Goyat, and Sunil Kumar, an Asian Games bronze medallist and former Asian champion who won his 87kg Greco-Roman berth over Rohit Bura.
Sujeet Kalkal, fresh off gold at this year’s Asian Championships, rounds out the marquee names in the 65kg freestyle category.
How the Squad Was Originally Selected
The May trials were held across all 18 Olympic weight categories, split evenly between women’s wrestling, men’s freestyle, and Greco-Roman. Men’s freestyle trials took place at the Regional Centre in Lucknow, while the women’s competition was held at Indira Gandhi Stadium in New Delhi. One notable name who missed out entirely: Vinesh Phogat, ousted in the semifinals of the women’s 53kg trials by Meenakshi Goyat, who then lost the final berth to Antim Panghal.
A Doping Crisis That Gutted Three Weight Categories
The buildup to these Games has been overshadowed by a run of doping cases that forced the Wrestling Federation of India to strip three athletes from the squad entirely. Deepak Punia, originally selected in the men’s 97kg freestyle category, tested positive for clomiphene – becoming the third doping case tied to this squad. He joins Mukul Dahiya (men’s 86kg freestyle) and Deepanshu Ahlawat (men’s 130kg Greco-Roman), both already disqualified before him.
The fallout is stark: India will have no representatives at all in the freestyle 86kg and 97kg categories, or in Greco-Roman 130kg, at these Games. The WFI has argued that earlier notification of the positive tests could have allowed replacements to be entered before final Asian Games submissions closed – a complaint that speaks to how late in the process these cases emerged.
Where Wrestling Sits in India’s Asian Games History
Wrestling remains one of India’s most consistent medal sports at the Asian Games, sitting third in the country’s all-time medal tally for the sport behind shooting and kabaddi, with 65 total medals across history – 11 gold, 15 silver, and 39 bronze. At the previous edition in Hangzhou in 2023, India won six medals: one silver and five bronze.
India’s gold medal history in the sport traces back decades on the men’s side, from Maruti Mane, Malwa Singh, and Ganpat Andalkar in 1962, through Chandgi Ram (1970), Rajinder Singh (1978), Kartar Singh (1978 and 1986), Satpal Singh (1982), Yogeshwar Dutt (2014), and Bajrang Punia (2018). On the women’s side, the record is far thinner: Vinesh Phogat remains India’s only Asian Games gold medallist in wrestling, achieved at the 2018 Games.
What This Squad Is Actually Carrying Into Japan
Between the doping disqualifications and the absence of a returning star like Phogat, this squad arrives in Aichi-Nagoya missing some of the depth it might otherwise have had across three weight categories. But with Sehrawat, Panghal, Sunil Kumar, and Kalkal all entering as genuine medal contenders off recent continental-level results, India’s wrestling program is still positioned to add to its historically strong tally – even if this year’s path there looks considerably messier than usual.