Tokyo: Wrestler Deepak Punia defeated China's Lin Zushen in Men's Freestyle 86kg bout here during 1/4 Final at the Tokyo Olympics.
He entered the semifinals with 6-3 win over Zushen. The second seed in 86 kg is one victory away from assuring a medal for India.
Earlier, Punia had defeated Ekerekeme Agiomor of Nigeria, a former African Champion.
Punia's had gone through a topsy-turvy ride last year and he joins the Olympics in the back of an injury. On the other hand, the Nigerian has won three medals at the African Wrestling Championships. He is only the fifth wrestler from the country to have qualified for Olympics.
In the first period, Punia started off brilliantly taking early lead with 2 points. The period ended with a scoreline of 4-1.Punia showed complete aggression in the second period. 12-1 read the scorecard as he registered an easy victory.
Punia will play in the semi-final later in the day.