Ten Indian boxers enter U-19 Asian Boxing Championship finals

Ten Indian boxers, including seven women, entered the finals of the under-19 Asian Boxing Championships in Bangkok, following dominant semi-final wins. India is also assured of 13 U22 category medals

Hyderabad: Ten Indian boxers, including seven women, will be vying for gold in the under-19 Asian Boxing Championships in Bangkok on Friday, after registering convincing victories in their respective semi-final bouts.

Women boxers Nisha (54kg), Muskan (57kg), Vini (60kg), Nisha (65kg), Aarti Kumari (75kg), Parchi Tokas (80+kg), along with Mausam Suhag (65kg), Rahul Kundu (75kg), and Hemant Sangwan (90kg) in the men’s event, have reached the final. Kritika (80kg) has a direct entry into the final.

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India are also assured of 13 medals in the U22 category, with five boxers set to fight for gold.

In the 54kg semifinal, Nisha completely dominated Himari Watanabe of Japan for a 5:0 verdict. Vini (60kg) and Nisha (65kg) also clinched their respective semifinals, with the former beating Ruixue Li and the latter defeating Ziyue Bao of China.

Earlier in the 57kg semifinal, Muskan overturned China’s Jiaen Wang’s slight advantage with a dominant third round to win 4:1.

Aarti Kumari then rained in enough punches on Thanh Tuyen Tran of Vietnam to force the referee to stop the 75kg semi-final bout in the second round.

Parchi Tokas rounded off the tally with a 3:2 win over Zhaksylyk Sanina of Kazakhstan in the 80+kg semifinals.

In the evening session, Mausam Suhag continued India’s winning streak with a 5:0 win over Akshan Hashemi of Iran in the men’s 65kg bout. Rahul Kundu joined them in the finals with a 5:0 win over Shildebay Nursultan of Kazakhstan in the 75kg semis.

Hemant Sangwan ended the day for India on a winning note with a 5:0 win over Qirui He of China.

Yashika (women’s 51kg), Akanksha Phalaswal (women’s 70kg), Shivam (men’s 55kg), and Gaurav (men’s 85kg) will return home with a bronze medal each.