“Deserves the silver medal”: Sourav Ganguly rallies behind Vinesh Phogat

Former India captain Sourav Ganguly has come forward in support of wrestler Vinesh Phogat, who faced a huge blow to her Olympic gold dream after being disqualified just ahead of the final bout in the women’s 50kg freestyle event at the Paris Olympics.

The disqualification came after Vinesh weighed 100 grams over the prescribed weight limit during the morning weigh-in. Ganguly, like many others, believes that Vinesh, who had fought her way to the finals, at least deserves a silver medal for her efforts.

“I don’t know the exact rule, but I’m sure that when she reached the finals, she must have qualified properly,” Ganguly said as quoted by PTI.

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“So when you go to the finals, it’s either a gold or silver medal. Whether she was disqualified wrongfully or not, I don’t know, but she deserves the silver medal at least,” he added.

After getting disqualified from the event, Vinesh appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), requesting that she be awarded a joint silver medal alongside Cuban wrestler Yusneylis Guzman Lopez. The decision on Vinesh’s appeal is expected to be announced on August 13.