Vinesh Phogat dropped out of the Asian Games trials after losing to Meenakshi Goit in the semi-finals. The dramatic day ended in disappointment More sports news.

Vinesh PhogatIndia’s hopes of making the team for the 2026 Asian Games ended on Saturday after they lost 4-6 to Asian bronze medalist Meenakshi Goit in the semifinals of the women’s 53kg selection trials at the Indira Gandhi Stadium in New Delhi.The defeat ended Vinesh’s campaign after an eventful day in which he was first cleared to compete in the 53kg category and then struggled to make it to the last four.Vinesh started their campaign with a 7-1 win over Haryana’s Jyoti. He then defeated Nesho in a tightly contested quarter-final to make it to the semi-finals.The encounter against Nasho saw Vinesh fight back after trailing 0-5 in the opening period. Nesho almost pinned the former World Championship medalist after landing a four-point throw, but Vinesh managed to escape.The competition was halted several times due to challenges with the display screens and technical issues, resulting in long breaks. Nesho controlled large portions of the match with an effective half-headlock, but Vinesh turned the tide of the bout with a four-point throw of his own in the second round.Vinesh then attempted to pin Neshu, prompting her husband and coach Sombar Rathi, along with supporters, to call for a pin decision. Finally a challenge was taken. Officials ruled that the referee had blown the “wrong whistle”, but Vinesh was not pinned. Instead, Nesho was placed in a grounded position, though she was unable to take advantage.A subsequent two-point move gave Vinesh a 6-5 lead. Later the score was 6-6, with Vinesh leading the way. Nesho made one last attack but was not awarded points. His coach challenged the decision but lost the review, allowing Vinesh to advance to the semi-finals.After the bout, Nishva remained on the mat crying and refused to shake hands with the referee or Vinesh.Earlier in the day, Vinesh was embroiled in a controversy over her weight category. The Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) initially informed him during the official weigh-in that he would only be allowed to compete in the 50 kg division, citing his participation in that category in his last four international events, including the Paris Olympics.Vinesh contested the decision and accused the federation of discriminating against him by barring him from competing in the category of his choice.This issue was later resolved in his favor. Vinesh weighed 53.9 kg and was in the 53 kg draw.However, her run came to an end in the semi-finals, where Meenakshi Goyet won 6–4 to knock her out of the Asian Games competition.