India in World kabaddi semis

Turning out an assuring performance, reigning champions India defeated Malaysia 68-21 to book a semi-final berth in the second World Cup Kabaddi tournament in Mumbai on Thursday.

Enjoying a huge 35-7 lead at half-time, India, propelled by the efforts of Ramesh Kumar Jr, Manpreet Singh and Gaurav Shetty, came through in this quarter-final encounter during the three-day event, organised by the Karnala Sports Academy.

In the semi-finals, to be played on Friday, India will meet Bangladesh, who brushed aside the challenge of Nepal by a 30-15 margin in the first quarter-final during the evening session.

Also making their way into the penultimate round, were last time's runners-up Iran, who breezed past Thailand by scripting a comprehensive 34-4 victory.

Despite losing one of its key player due to an injury early in the game, Iran, who led 17-3 at half-time, had enough ammunition to ensure an easy passage.

Earlier in the day, title favourites India made it to the quarter-finals overcoming the lukewarm challenge of Sri Lanka 47-14, with Manpreet Singh and Rakesh Kumar having a good outing against a not-so-potent opposition.

Meanwhile, Japan recorded a convincing 66-34 win over the West Indies, who produced a much-improved performance in their second outing.

Maintaining their fine form, Bangladesh registered their third straight win in pool C when they defeated Italy 70-36.

Iran, who had defeated South Korea in their opening match recorded resounding victories over United Kingdom and Nepal to make the knock-out stage with an all-win record.