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India's super heavyweight boxer, Satish Kumar, made a brilliant Olympic debut as he stormed into the quarterfinals in Tokyo on Thursday. The 2018 Commonwealth Games silver medalist beat Jamaica's Ricardo Brown 4-1 to set up a last-eight showdown with reigning world and Asian champion Bakhodir Jalolov of Uzbekistan in + 91kg category.
On that note, here are three talking points from Satish Kumar's superb win:
#1 Satish Kumar's tactical brilliance helped him overcome height disadvantage in first round
With medals from the Asian Games, Asian Championships and Commonwealth Games, Satish Kumar was the more experienced boxer in this bout. Ricardo Brown, who bagged bronze at the 2019 Pan-American Games, meanwhile, was the first boxer to represent Jamaica at the Games since 1996.
But he came with a height advantage and it needed tactically brilliant play from Satish Kumar to overcome it.
The 32-year-old kept maintaining a bit of distance in the initial stages of the first round before the duo went all out with one minute remaining on the clock. Satish needed to dunk against an opponent with more height and it was briefly a struggle for the Indian.
The Commonwealth Games silver medalist was clearly taking more time to rethink his strategy. But despite that, he did manage to land left hooks and right jabs just enough for all five judges to vote in his favor at the end of the first round.
#2 Satish suffered a cut on his forehead but managed it well till the end
The two super heavyweight boxers weren't keen to engage in duels and kept maintaining distance for much of the second round. However, when they did, Satish suffered a cut on his forehead and needed medical attention.
But that didn't affect the progress of the Indian. He maintained a superb defense before landing his jabs that connected brilliantly. The second round also went to the Indian with four of the five judges voting in his favor.
The third round was all about managing the cut and defending the lead and Satish Kumar did that well. Although Ricardo made some impactful punches, it didn't make much of a difference. Satish did sustain a few blows on the affected area but the Indian didn't let that come in his way.
Once again Satish Kumar managed to impress four of the judges to emerge as the winner on points (4-1).
#3 First Indian male boxer to win a round at Tokyo Olympics
Ahead of the Tokyo Olympics, Satish Kumar was the first-ever Indian boxer to qualify for the Games in the super heavyweight category. He is now the first male boxer to win a round at the Tokyo Games following the exits of Vikas Krishan, Manish Kaushik and Ashish Kumar.
The women, however, have had a flawless campaign so far, with all three of Mary Kom, Lovlina Borgohain and Pooja Rani winning their opening bouts.
