Weight of expectations and tag of defending champion motivated me, says Boxing champion Nikhat

While entering the ring as defending champion itself has a pressure to defend the title, the pressure did mount on her

Hyderabad: Before entering the Women’s World Boxing Championships, Telangana boxer Nikhat Zareen was nervous as well as excited. While the tag of entering the ring as reigning world champion itself has pressure to defend the title, fighting in front of a home crowd for the first time did mount pressure on her.

Adding to that, Nikhat, who fought in the 52kg weight category last time and won the gold, had to cut down two kilos to move to 48-50kg category with the former weight category being scrapped from the Olympics. But how did she manage the battle?

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“True, I was under a lot of pressure before the tournament began. I was both excited and nervous because people will have a lot of expectations from me since I was the poster girl. A lot of people came to watch me play. I was competing in the Olympic category for the first time.”

“If I lose, people will say many things. But I was not focused on any of that. I had faith in myself and thought I would take this competition as a learning experience and give my 100 per cent in every bout. The kind of support I got from the audience was amazing,” she explained.

The 26-year-old boxer also said that reducing the weight was tough. “It was very tough cutting down two kilos and fighting back-to-back bouts. I fought six bouts in a tournament for the first time since I was unseeded. It was very tough for me.”

Speaking about the competition, Nikhat said her semifinal bout was the toughest but the final was a rollercoaster ride with fortunes fluctuating. “My best game was in the semifinal but the toughest was the final. In the second bout, she got a warning and then I got a warning. Both got eight counts in the next round. I won the first round unanimously while she won the second by split decision. So I had to go for the kill in the third.”

The victory assured her a place in the Asian Games but her journey to Paris Games next year begins now as a semifinal finish in the continental showpiece can earn her a place in the Olympics.

“This victory will play a big role going into the Asian Games and Paris Games. With this gold, my ranking will become No.1 and I will get seeding for the Asian Games. Hopefully, I get gold there and qualify for the Olympics,” she said.

Bats for boxing academy

The Nizamabad boxer is eager to start an international level boxing academy to cater to the needs of aspiring boxers since the State lacks proper facilities. “We don’t have many boxing institutes or academies in Telangana. So I want to build an academy to support boxers. We have rings in LB Stadium but it is not maintained well. The facility at the Nizam College is an outdoor one. I am in touch with Kavitha mam and Sports Minister V Srininvas Goud. Hopefully, we will get land for the academy,” she signed off.