On Friday, January 30, 2026, Haryana women’s kabaddi team bagged the 72nd Women’s Senior National Kabaddi Championship title. The team secured a hard-fought victory over the defending champions Indian Railways by 39-37 held at the Balayogi Stadium in Hyderabad. With Railways ending up in silver, Himachal Pradesh and Tamil Nadu who lost their semi-finals match were awarded with bronze medals for their performances in the national championship.
When it comes to individual brilliance, Nikita stood out as the highlight performer of the match scoring 17 points and led Haryana to achieve a decisive win over the Railways team. Joining Nikita was Ruchi who made a valuable contribution by scoring nine points for the team, while Raj Rani was another key player of the team. Meanwhile, Pooja was the top scorer of the Indian Railways team with 11 points along with all-round performance from Pooja and Sonali Shingate who added six points each.
Haryana’s road to final saw some consistency in their performances throughout the knockout stage. The team secured their first win over Madhya Pradesh in the quarter-final, then followed with their semi-final victory over Himachal Pradesh by 35-29 which was a tight contest and ending with a national title on their team.
The other finalist, Indian Railways, meanwhile, showcased their experience and depth throughout the tournament. They progressed to the final with commanding wins over Maharashtra in the quarter-final and Tamil Nadu in the semi-final, underlining their status as one of the most consistent sides in the competition before narrowly missing out in the title clash.
The 72nd Women’s Senior National Kabaddi Championship was held from January 27 to 30 that featured over 28 kabaddi teams competing for the national title. The tournament serves as an important selection process for the 2026 Asian Games 2026 which is expected to be held this year in Japan.
Indian Railways, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Haryana, Chandigarh, Tamil Nadu, Punjab and Himachal Pradesh were the teams to progress to the quarter-finals. Meanwhile, only Indian Railways, Haryana, Tamil Nadu and Himachal Pradesh later qualified as the semi-finalists.
Earlier in the first semi-finals, the Indian Railways secured themselves a decisive 46-28 win over Tamil Nadu. Pooja was the top-scorer for the Indian Railways with 11 points.
Women’s Senior National Kabaddi Championship 2026 winners
- Haryana (Gold medal)
- Indian Railways (Silver medal)
- Tamil Nadu (Bronze medal)
- Himachal Pradesh (Bronze medal)
