India confirms its first medal as Nandini enters semifinals of Strandja Memorial Boxing Tournament 

Indian boxer Nandini stormed into the semifinals of the ongoing 73rd Strandja Memorial Boxing Tournament in Sofia, Bulgaria on Wednesday. With this victory, the Indian contingent confirmed their first medal in the current edition of the tournament.

Anamika (50kg) will look to secure another medal for India when she takes on Boualem R of Algeria in the quarterfinals later in the day. Sumit (75kg), meanwhile, will fight Ukraine's Khyzhniak O in the second round.

The 21-year-old Nandini started in dominant fashion against Kazakhstan's Valeriya Axenova in the women's +81kg quarterfinals bout. As the bout progressed, it got tougher for Axenova to deal with Nandini's relentless powerful punches. The Indian was then declared the winner by Referee Stopping Contest verdict.

The Indian pugilists bagged two medals in the last edition of this prestigious boxing tournament. Deepak Kumar and Naveen Boora won silver and bronze medals respectively.

Meanwhile, Arundhati beat Italy's Melissa Gemini in women's 70kg while Parveen defeated Kazakhstan's Aida Abikeyeva in men's 63kg by identical 5-0 margins to sail into the quarter-finals.

Earlier, Indian boxers Nitu and Anamika progressed to the quarterfinals in the women's 48kg and 50kg categories, respectively, at the ongoing 73rd Strandja Memorial Tournament.

Nitu outpowered Russia's Chumgalakova Iuliia 5-0, while Anamika edged Chukanova Zlatislava with a 4-1 scoreline.

Meanwhile, India's Sachin Kumar (80kg), Rohit Mor (57kg) suffered defeats in their respective matches on the men's side. On the women's side, three boxers - Meena Rani (60kg), Anjali Tushir (66kg) and Saweety (75kg) - have also bowed out of the competition.

Strandja Memorial Tournament: Nandini's semifinal opponent

The reigning national champion Nandini will square off against former world champion and 2021 Asian Championships gold medallist Kazakhstan's Lazzat Kungeibayeva in the semifinals.