DUBAI: Defending champion Amit Panghal (52kg) needed to be satisfied with a silver trophy in this season’s Asian Boxing Championships after dropping an exhausting closing to famous nemesis Shakhobidin Zoirov of Uzbekistan, according to Monday.
The Indian dropped 2-3 in that which was a replica of this 2019 world tournament final, that had ended in Zoirov’s success.
The competition lived up to this hype with the Olympic-bound fighters participated in a quick exchange of cries in the very first round.
Zoirov maintained the opening around.
But from the next circular, Panghal increased his match with a top notch, evading Zoirov’s variety with his tempo and landing his abandoned straights precisely.
Zoirov, on the other hand, fought to link.
Both went out at the next round but it had been Panghal who had been impressive with his own body shots despite having an injured eye.
He had the judges’ verdict in his favour because of the around but it wasn’t sufficient to change the last score-line.
Together with 15 medals, India surpassed its past best-ever series at this Championship, attained in 2019, once the nation secured 13 championships in all, including two golden.
On Monday, Pooja Rani (75kg) had been the only woman fighter to hit gold, whereas six-time world winner M C Mary Kom (51kg), along with championship debutants Lalbuatsaihi (64kg) along with Anupama (81+kg) finished with silver awards after close losses at the finals.
Eight other Indians — Simranjit Kaur (60kg), Vikas Krishan (69kg), along with Lovlina Borgohain (69kg), and also Jaismine (57kg), Sakshi Chaudhary (64kg), Monika (48kg), Saweety (81kg) and Varinder Singh (60kg) — procured bronze medals after semifinal losses.