Olympics 2021 Boxing: Pooja Rani suffers heartbreaking defeat, goes down fighting against Qian Li in Quarter-Finals

Good effort from the two-time Asian champion but it wasn't to be. She can still be proud of her performance, reaching the last eight at the Olympics!
Keep following Sportskeeda for live updates on other events - including Sindhu's semifinal, which is LIVE now - from the Olympics 2021!
Goodbye for now, continue enjoying the sporting action and stay safe!

A comprehensive victory for Qian in the end as she negated Rani's natural attacking style of play and kept the Indian on the backfoot for a majority of the game. She will go on to face ROC's Magomedalieva Zenfira in the second semi-final on the 6th of August!

💔@PoojaRani gives her best but couldn't get over the line as she goes down against Rio #Olympics 🥉medalist 🇨🇳's Qian Li in Quarterfinals of 75 kg at @Tokyo2020 #RingKeBaazigar #boxing #Tokyo2020 #Cheer4India #TeamIndia pic.twitter.com/hAlLZYmOVz
— Boxing Federation (@BFI_official) July 31, 2021

Tough day at the office for Pooja Rani as she couldn’t quite find her footing in the bout.

The Indian made an aggressive start, but Qian’s nimble footwork allowed the Chinese to put the Indian under pressure right away.

Rani landed a good straight jab in the opening round, but couldn’t find too many answers after Qian shifted to a more proactive stance.

A dejected and quite emotional Rani makes her way out of the ring. Elation for Qian as she has assured a medal for her country!

Qian wins with a unanimous 5-0 scoreline!

Third-ranked Qian was too hot to handle for Rani as she loses the Quarter-Final bout 5:0

Rani going for everything here!!

Last 30 seconds!

Qian lands an uppercut, putting Rani on the backfoot.

Qian is cruising effortlessly to a win here. Only a minute to go. Will we see a dramatic comeback from Rani?

Qian has done well to block Rani's attacks

Final Round and Rani needs something special to secure a win here

Round 3 underway!

Round 2 comes to an end and Qian is in the lead.

Qian takes the second round 5-0 as well. Rani needs a knockout here to score the win. Things are looking tough for the Indian!

Qian landing punches at will here and there was nothing Rani could do about that

Rani's coach lets her know only a minute to go. Will have to make a dramatic comeback now.

Qian is doing well to block Rani's attacks.

Rani a lot more defensive in this round

Qian is a more proactive now as she has chosen to take an aggressive stance.

Round 2 is underway!

Words of encouragement from Rani's coach as he provides some valuable advice.

Qian take Round 5-0

Rani needs to better construct her attacks if she wishes to cause an upset here

20 seconds to go!

Chen shifts to a more proactive stance now. Rani needs to be careful here.

Rani lands a straight jab!

The timing of the blows is just slightly off in the beginning.

The Chinese is light on her feet and doing well to avoid Rani's heavy blows at the moment.

Pooja Rani is looking to go out in attack early.

We're underway

Match Officials:
Referee: (AZE) BABANLI Anar
Judge 1: (KAZ) SUIYENISH Yermek
Judge 2: (UGA) ACIGA FULA Antonio Stephen
Judge 3: (CUB) VAZQUEZ CALERO Wilfredo
Judge 4: (AUS) RUHEN Carl
Judge 5: (ROU) COBZAC Ramona Manuela

We're seconds away from live action.

The athletes are in the in the ring. Pooja Rani in red!

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We're minutes away from Pooja Rani's bout! Keep sharing your inputs and comments with us in the live chat box!

The third quarter-final between Magomedalieva Zenfira and Gramane Rady Adosinda is underway, with the former having taken a 5:0 lead after the first round. Stay tuned as Pooja Rani will be in action shortly!

Li Qian: All you need to know about Pooja Rani's quarterfinal opponent

Get to know Li Qian, Rani's quarterfinal opponent a little better before the bout starts. Use the link above to read Sportskeeda's latest piece on the world no. 3 Qian.

𝐂𝐎𝐌𝐄 𝐎𝐍 🔥

Back to back Asian champion @BoxerPooja will play her Quarter final bout today and will be keen to secure her SF spot and another medal for 🇮🇳 against 🇨🇳's Qian Li at @Tokyo2020 🤞🏻#RingKeBaazigar #Boxing #Tokyo2020 #Cheer4India #TeamIndia pic.twitter.com/7mGCM9Kf3H
— Boxing Federation (@BFI_official) July 31, 2021

Road to the quarterfinals:
Pooja Rani
def. Ichrak Chaib (ALG) 5-0 in the round of 16

Li Qiang
def. Aoife O'Rourke (IRL) 5-0 in the round of 16

Pooja Rani's quarterfinal bout (July 31) schedule and details - When and where to watch, opponent, timings (IST)

The bout is scheduled to be played at 3.36 pm IST, which is about 25 minutes from now. In the meantime, take a look at the full length preview from the link above.

Hello and welcome to Sportskeeda’s live coverage of the Women’s Middleweight Fourth Quarter-Final which will pit Pooja Rani against Li Qian at the Kokugikan Arena.

After Lovlina Borgohain’s exploits in the welterweight category, the limelight will now be on Pooja Rani as she takes on Rio Olympics 2016 Bronze medallist Li Qian. Both pugilists are just one win away from confirming a medal for their respective countries.

The bout will be a challenging one for the Indian pugilist as Li Qian has had the better of Rani in recent times. The 30-year old lost to her Chinese counterpart 5:0 in the Olympic Qualification Tournament last year. Prior to that, the 31-year old Qian reigned over the Haryana-born pugilist, securing a 2:0 win in the Semi-Finals of the 2014 Asian Games.

Pooja Rani shattered the myth that Indian boxers struggle in the heavier weight categories as she secured a resounding 5:0 win over Alegrian boxer Ichrak Chaib in the Round of 16 bout. Similarly, Li Qian, who is one of the favourites to win Gold, crushed Ireland’s Aoife O’ Rourke 5:0 to book a Quarter-Final berth.

As the 2021 Asian Championship Gold winner aims for a podium finish, it will be interesting to see how she goes about in her bout against third-ranked Qian. So sit back, relax and enjoy as we bring to you all the live action that unfolds over the course of this bout!