Amit Panghal books Commonwealth Games berth, major upset for Satish at Selection Trials

Tokyo Olympian and world 2019 silver medalist Amit Panghal sealed a berth for the Birmingham Commonwealth Games in the men’s 51kg category.

The national selection trials were held on Thursday at the National Institute of Sports in Patiala, Punjab under the aegis of the Boxing Federation of India. The national trials were held in eight weight categories.

Panghal faced a tough rival in Deepak, but eventually prevailed to win the final bout of 51kg with a 4-1 score to earn a place in the national team for the Commonwealth Games. The Commonwealth Games will be Panghal’s first major competition in 2022.

The national selection trials saw Assam’s seasoned international boxer Shiva Thapa punching his way to victory. He outplayed arch rival and Olympian Manish Kaushik, the silver medalist of the 2018 Commonwealth Games, to cement a place in the 63kg.

While Amit Panghal was impressive, Olympian Satish failed to seal his berth for the Commonwealth Games

In another major upset, India’s Tokyo Olympian Satish Kumar bowed out as he lost to Sagar in the heavyweight category. Sagar will compete at the Commonwealth Games in the plus 92kg.

In the 57kg category, Mohammed Hussamuddin displayed his prowess to defeat 2019 Asian medalist Kavinder Singh Bisht to earn a ticket to Birmingham with a 4-1 win.

Making the most of the opportunities, Rohit Tokas sailed through in the 67kg category. Tokas scored a narrow 3-2 win against Aditya Pratap Yadav.

The reigning national champion in the men’s heavyweight, Narender, lost the final plus 92kg bout to Sagar by 0-5. A Tokyo Olympian and a strong contender for a place in the plus 92kg group, Satish lost in the semifinal stages of the selection trials.

Sumit Kundu (75kg), Ashish Kumar (80kg) and Sanjeet (92kg) are the other three boxers who booked a berth for the Commonwealth Games at their respective weight.

The Indian boxing team won as many as nine medals, including three gold, at the 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games.

“Almost all the final bouts were keenly contested. Finalists in all the eight weight categories have more time to sharpen their skills to perform at their optimum level at the Commonwealth Games,” said a national boxing coach over the phone from Patiala.

The women’s boxing trials for the Commonwealth Games will be held from June 9-11 at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi Indoor Sports Complex.