Ever since the news of wrestlers Vinesh Phogat and Bajrang Punia being granted a direct entry into Asian Games 2023 has been made official, an objection has been made from other wrestlers who feel that it is not a fair call. The latest to raise her voice is Rio Olympics bronze medallist Sakshi Malik. She has criticised the government's decision of giving the two wrestlers a free pass into the Asian set to happen in China later this year.
It is pertinent to note that Malik was a key member of the Wrestlers' protest in Delhi against the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh. The wrestler took to Twitter to share a post before uploading a video to further clarify her stand. In her tweet, she that the entire Asian Games trials exemption is a tool to divide the wrestling community.
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"The government has done the work of breaking the unity of the wrestlers by sending their names directly to the Asian Games. I have never gone to play without trial nor do I support it. I am disturbed by this intention of the government. We had talked about extending the date of trials, but the government has put this defamation in our pocket," her tweet in Hindi roughly translates to in English.
Later, she uploaded a video in which she clarified her stance, revealing that she had been told to write an email if she wanted to be considered for a direct entry to Asian Games.
"We had asked the government to give us time to gear up for Asian Games. We had demanded that our trials be taken post August 10. Government had agreed also to that request which is why we had come for our preparatory camps overseas. However, it has now come to notice in the last 3-4 days that in two weight categories direct entries are being granted for Asian Games. I had also been told to write an email and U would be considered for a direct entry. But I refused as I didn't want to go without trials," she said.