Rohit Mitra
Noida, Feb 1 (.) Title favourites Haryana Thunders were crowned champions of the Pro Wrestling League 2026, as they beat Delhi Dangal Warriors 5-4 in a keenly fought contest at the Noida Indoor Stadium on Sunday.
In the opening bout men’s 74 kg Delhi’s Turan Byranov fought Parvinder Singh. The Azeri athlete who won silver in the 2021 European Championships and U23 World Champions gold in 2019, dominated the bout winning it 8-2. Parvinder had no answer to Turan’s leg grabs.
Kajal Dhouchak of Haryana faced Delhi’s Ukrainian athlete Anastasia Alpyeyyeva in the women’s 76 kg bout.
Kajal, the winner of the gold medal at the U23 World Championships (2025), was up against Anastasia, a winner of the 2025 European Wrestling Championships.
After a cautious start by both fighters in round 2, the contest opened up as Kajal was able to secure her opponent’s back.
In the power minute Kajal won the contest 3-1. Kajal’s upset against the senior opponent tied the contest at 1-1.
Haryana’s Tumur Tulga faced Sujeet Kalkal in the men’s 65 kg bout. The Mongolian athlete Tumur, a winner of the Hangzhou Asian Games gold medal, took the lead against Sujeet, a gold medalist at the U23 World Champions in 2025.
The bout went to the power minute with Tumur leading 6-1.
Sujeet touted as one of India’s best emerging wrestlers, turned it around with a leg grab and throw, taking the match 8-6, and giving Delhi a 2-1 lead.
Now Haryana fielded its strongest athlete Yui Susaki, the two-time Olympic medalist, against Delhi’s Saarika in the women’s 53 kg category.
Yui, known for ending bouts early, entered the arena amid a rapturous applause. Susaki, the Haryana captain, ended the bout in the first round with a score of 15-0, and took the match to 2-2.
Delhi’s Ronak beat Anirudh Gulia 12-2 in the 125 kg bout, to restore Delhi’s lead at 4-3.
Neha Sangwan of Haryana was up against Delhi’s Anjali in the 57 kg weight category.

Neha, a silver medalist at the U-23 World Championships 2022, pinned her opponent to win the bout 8-2. Now the match stood at 4-4, with the ninth and final bout to decide the winner.
Iryna Koliadenko, two-time Olympic medalist of Haryana, faced Delhi’s Anjli in the women’s 62 kg bout.

Anjli was no match for Iryna, who has been one of the strongest wrestlers at the league. She won the bout emphatically. Anjli, who won her yesterday’s semi finals bout impressively, was no match for Iryna, losing to her 0-16.
Sports Minister Dr Mansukh Mandaviya, Wrestling Federation of India President Sanjay Singh, India team cricketer Shreyas Iyer, Gautam Budh Nagar MLA Pankaj Singh, and former Wrestling Federation of India president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, were some of the eminent people in attendance.
The Pro Wrestling League made a comeback this year after 2019.
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