'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,/9j/2wBDAAYEBQYFBAYGBQYHBwYIChAKCgkJChQODwwQFxQYGBcUFhYaHSUfGhsjHBYWICwgIyYnKSopGR8tMC0oMCUoKSj/2wBDAQcHBwoIChMKChMoGhYaKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCj/wgARCAAHAAoDASIAAhEBAxEB/8QAFQABAQAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAABQf/2gAIAQEAAAAAl5H/xAAUAQEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAF/9oACAECEAAAAH//xAAUAQEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAD/9oACAEDEAAAAD//xAAhEAACAgAGAwEAAAAAAAAAAAABAgMEAAUREhMhBhQiMf/aAAgBAQABPwCjSpU8ulyr0rPJdWKISiVOIFHDuWXTcxZQB0Rpi14gs1mWWskscDuWjTePlSeh+4//xAAXEQEBAQEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACEQAE/9oACAECAQE/AOYCII2b/8QAGBEAAgMAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAIBAwT/2gAIAQMBAT8A0WNDH//Z'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Young Indian boxer Gaurav Saini stormed in to the 70kg junior boy’s final at the ASBC Asian Youth & Junior Boxing Championships after beating Kyrgyzstan’s Zakirov Mukhamaadaziz 4-1 in a pulsating bout on Monday.
Apart from Gaurav Saini, Ashish (54kg), Anshul (57kg) and Bharat Joon (+81kg), too, put up impressive performances to advance to the semi-finals on the third day of the continental event.
Earlier, boxers Rohit Chamoli (48kg) and Ankush (66kg) had secured their places in the semi-finals of the junior boys’ event.
Gaurav Saini looked in good touch and, despite some resistance from his Kyrgyz opponent, did not lose any control before securing a 4-1 win in the light middleweight category.
Read: 5 boxers who can take over the mantle from Vikas Krishan and Mary Kom
Ashish and Anshul were also dominant against their respective opponents, Rahmanov Jafar from Tajikistan and local favorite Mansoor Khaled.
While boxer Ashish notched up a comfortable 5-0 win, Anshul’s strong blows and continuous attack forced referees to stop the contest in the first round of the match and give the result in the Indian's favor.
Young boxer Bharat had to work hard during his narrow 3-2 win in a hard-fought quarter-final against another Uzbek pugilist, Kenesbaev Aynazar Tolybae.
Some Indian boxers bit the dust in the ongoing continental event. Krrish Pal (46kg) and Preet Malik (63kg) suffered defeats in their respective quarter-finals bouts.
More medal chances for Indian boxers
Seven youth boxers, Vishvanath Suresh (48kg), Victor Shaikhom Singh (54kg), Vijay Singh (57kg), Rabichandra Singh (60kg), Vanshaj (64kg), Daksh Singh (67kg) and Jaydeep Rawat (71kg), will fight in the quarter-finals on the fourth day. A win would assure the boxers at least a bronze medal.
It is the first time that both the age groups—junior and youth—are being played together in the Asian Championships.
The on-going Asian Championships is a much-needed competitive tournament for promising young boxers at the Asian level after a gap of almost two years, lost due to the pandemic.
The Indian boxers have already assured the country of more than 25 medals in the event, which has been witnessing competition in the presence of pugilists from strong boxing nations such as Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan to name a few.
