DUBAI: Defending champion Amit Panghal (52kg) along with Shiva Thapa (64kg) Slipped to the Asian Boxing Championship finals with Disputed victories from the last-four Point on Friday.
Even though Panghal out-punched familiar foe Saken Bibossinov of Kazakhstan 5-0, Thapa, the very first Indian fighter at the championship history to procure five awards, ruled top-seeded defending winner Bakhodur Usmonov of Tajikistan to create the final with a 4-0 conclusion.
But, tournament debutant and domestic winner Varinder Singh (60kg) settled for the bronze medal following a high-intensity battle against Iran’s Daniyal Shahbakhsh.
The Indian dropped 2-3 after battling out his heart.
Panghal was in prime form since he took charge with his eloquent counter-attacks from the weaker Bibossinov.
The Kazakh is a world championship bronze-medallist and’d dropped to silver-winner Panghal at the semifinals of the event also.
The Indian performed the waiting game to perfection because the third-seeded Bibossinov’s strategy to dazzle him early aggression dropped flat as the bout progressed.
The world number one from Haryana became the aggressor at the last round as Bibossinov conducted out of steam.
Panghal will square off against reigning Olympic and world champion Shakhobidin Zoirov of Uzbekistan at the last on Monday.
It’ll be a replica of this 2019 world tournament final where the Indian had dropped to settle for silver.
It had been slow domination for Thapa, that shot a great step of his rival from the opening round before hammering a few power-packed hooks.
Even the Indian’s dominance attained its summit in the next round if Usmonov confronted a standing eight count and also Thapa taunted him with a few nicely set body blows.
Even the 27-year-old Thapa’s first trophy in the occasion was a golden at 2013, followed by a bronze in 2015, a silver at 2017 and the other bronze at 2019.
On Thursday evening, four Indian girls boxers had progressed into the finals.
Six-time world winner MC Mary Kom (51kg), Lalbuatsaihi (64kg), Pooja Rani (75kg) and also Anupama (+81kg) won their charms to create the summit battle.
Of them, Pooja acquired a walkover following her competition pulled out.
It was heartbreak for tenth planet youth winner Sakshi Choudhary (54kg) because she dropped her final place following her rival, top-seeded Kazakh Dina Zholaman, successfully contested the narrow success which she’d clinched at the last-four period.
Sakshi had prevailed 3-2 at the law bout however, the conclusion has been contested from the Kazakh group and finally overturned.
