Vinesh Phogat was found to be 100 grams over the permissible weight on the second day of the weigh-ins, which led to her being disqualified. It must be noted that she was under the limit on the first day. The rules by the United Wrestling World (UWW) stipulated that Yusneylis Guzman Lopez, who Vinesh Phogat beat in the semi-final, would compete for the gold medal against Sarah Hildebrandt of the USA. In the final, Hildebrandt defeated the Cuban wrestler 3-0 to claim gold, while Guzman Lopez claimed silver, despite losing twice at the Olympics.

This caused a massive outcry not just in India, but also in wrestling circles with legendary American wrestler Jordan Burroughs leading the campaign on social media to award Vinesh Phogat a silver medal.

What has Sachin Tendulkar said about Vinesh Phogat?

Now Sachin Tendulkar also has joined in.

In an post on social media, the sporting icon said: “Time for an Umpire’s Call! Every sport has rules and those rules need to be seen in context, maybe even revisited at times. Vinesh Phogat qualified fair and square for the finals. Her disqualification by weight, was before the finals, and hence, for her to be robbed of a deserving silver medal defies logic and sporting sense. It would have been understandable if an athlete were to have been disqualified for ethical breaches such as the usage of performance enhancing drugs. In that case, to not be awarded any medal and be placed last would be justifiable.

“However, Vinesh beat her opponents fairly to reach the top two. She definitely deserves a silver medal. While we all wait for a verdict from the Court of Arbitration for Sport, 1et us hope and pray that Vinesh gets the recognition she deserves.”