National Boxing Championships: Sachin outweighs World Championships medallist Gaurav Bidhuri

Boxer Sachin defeated World Championships bronze medalist Gaurav Bidhuri in the 57kg bout at the Inspire Institute of Sports in Bellary, Karnataka, on Friday. Sachin made a phenomenal start to his campaign at the 5th Elite Men's National Boxing Championships.

Sachin was up against one of the strongest competitors for the title Gaurav, who represented the Railways Sports Promotion Board. However, Sachin held his nerves and exhibited a skillful boxing performance by attaining a 4-1 victory at the Championship.

The national boxing championship started on Wednesday and will continue until September 21.

The Championship made a comeback after a gap of one year due to the COVID 19 outbreak. The last edition was held in 2019 in Himachal Pradesh.

This championship will also serve as a great opportunity for the boxers as the gold medalists will be selected to represent the country at the upcoming 2021 AIBA Elite Men’s World Boxing Championships. The AIBA Elite Men’s World Boxing Championships are slated to take place in Belgrade, Serbia from 24 October to 6 November.

Sachin and his compatriots' results at the 5th Elite Men's National Boxing Championships

Chandigarh's Kuldeep Kumar (48kg) progressed on the third day of the Championships. Kuldeep booked a berth in the quarter-finals after an easy 4-0 win over Rajasthan's Sushil Sahran.

Telangana's Savio Dominic Michael and Goa's Ashok Patil have also advanced into the final eight in their respective 54 kg and 67 kg categories. Savio defeated Krishna Jora of Jharkhand, while Ashok Patil outhussled Himachal Pradesh's Mohan Chander.

Apart from Sachin, another Haryana pugilist and South Asian Games champion, Ankit Khatana, made his way through to the 75kg quarter-finals. He outweighed Himachal Pradesh's Dharm Pal by a unanimous margin.

It was a ruthless attacking performance from Sachin ever since the word go, against Roushan Kumar of Bihar during a 71kg opening round bout.

In the 75kg, Maharashtra Pugilist Nikhil Dubey continued his excellent run in the tournament and sailed into the quarter-finals.