Defending champion Pooja Rani (75kg) was the lone Indian lady boxer to strike gold on the Asian Championships whereas three others, together with six-time world champion MC Mary Kom (51kg), signed off with silver medals in Dubai on Sunday (May 30). The Olympic-bound Pooja (75 kg), who was competing in her first bout of the event after getting a bye and a walkover earlier, dismantled Mavluda Movlonova of Uzbekistan with a medical efficiency.
She additionally earned $10,000 for her marvellous one-bout present through which Movlonova was merely out of kinds, unable to maintain tempo with the Indian’s depth. However, six-time world champion Mary Kom (51kg), and event debutants Lalbuatsaihi (64kg) and Anupama (81+kg) ended with second place finishes.
All three misplaced tightly-contested bouts and fetched themselves a prize cash of USD 5,000 together with the silver medals. (*10*)The Olympic-bound Mary Kom went down in a break up 2-3 verdict to Nazym Kyzaibay of Kazakhstan.
It was the Manipuri celebrity’s seventh medal within the event, the primary being a gold that got here method again within the 2003 version. Her event document now stands at 5 gold and two silver medals.
Lalbuatsaihi misplaced 2-3 as properly however after giving her Kazakh rival Milana Safronova a combat to recollect. Lalbuatsaihi got here into the Indian crew as a late alternative for the seasoned Pwilao Basumatary, whose passport had expired. The Mizo boxer exhausted her rival together with her counter-attacks however misplaced momentum within the remaining spherical to finish second greatest.
Anupama was the final to take the ring towards former world champion Lazzat Kungeibayeva of Kazakhstan. She managed to carry her personal in a bout marred by extreme holding and clinching, however it was Kungeibayeva, who linked higher for a 3-2 win.
Earlier, up towards an opponent 11 years youthful to her, the 38-year-old Mary Kom made a formidable begin and clinched the opening spherical comfortably by counting on her sharp counter-attacks.
The tempo picked up within the second spherical and each the boxers confirmed aggressive intent. The Kazakh drew stage at this level together with her jabs touchdown completely. Mary Kom fought again within the remaining three minutes however that was not sufficient to get the judges’ nod.
Kyzaibay is a two-time world champion and a six-time nationwide champion. All gold-winners received prize cash of $10,000 every.
On Monday, Amit Panghal (52kg), Shiva Thapa (64kg) and Sanjeet (91kg) will combat it out within the males’s finals. Panghal will sq. off towards reigning Olympic and world champion Shakhobidin Zoirov of Uzbekistan. It will likely be a repeat of the 2019 world championship remaining through which the Indian had misplaced to settle for silver.
Thapa will likely be up towards Mongolia’s Baatarsukh Chinzorig, who’s the Asian Games silver-medallist. Sanjeet will tackle Kazakh legend Vassiliy Levit, who’s chasing his fourth gold on the continental showpiece.
Eight different Indians – the Olympic-bound trio of Simranjit Kaur (60kg), Vikas Krishan (69kg), and Lovlina Borgohain (69kg), and Jaismine (57kg), Sakshi Chaudhary (64kg), Monika (48kg), Saweety (81kg) and Varinder Singh (60kg) – secured bronze medals after semifinal losses.
They additionally received a prize cash of $2,500 every for their third-place finishes.
(with PTI inputs)
