Amit Panghal landed a series of punches in the third and final round to secure victory.©AFP
Indians Sachin Siwach (57 kg), Sanjeet Kumar (92 kg), Amit Panghal (51 kg) and Jaismine (57 kg women) took another step towards qualifying for the Paris Olympics, recording convincing victories over their opponents and advancing to the World Games Boxing Qualifiers in Bangkok Thursday. Sachin started India’s campaign with a clinical 5-0 victory over Olympian Batuhan Ciftci of Turkey in the pre-quarter-finals, before Sanjeet defeated Luis Sanchez of Venezuela by an identical margin in the round of 16.
In the 57 kg category, only three boxers will qualify for the Olympic Games in Paris. Sachin, therefore, needs to win two more fights to move on, while Sanjeet, who received a bye in the round of 64, will have a similar target as all four semi-finalists will qualify in his weight class.
Against an experienced boxer, Sachin gave his all in the first round and this strategy worked wonders for the Indian as he took control of the fight very quickly.
He obtained a unanimous verdict in the second round, and although Ciftci tried to return to the game in the third and final round, the Indian ultimately became too comfortable.
The 92kg fight between Sanjeet and Sanchez followed a similar pattern as the 2021 Asian Championships gold medalist did not allow his Venezuelan opponent to get a look inside in Round 1.
Sanchez showed spark in the second and third rounds, but the experienced Sanjeet kept his distance and landed counter punches to win easily.
Later in the day, Jaismine did not give Azerbaijan’s Mahsati Hamzayeva even a chance to fight, ending the round of 32 in the women’s 57 kg category with a convincing 5-0 verdict.
Then, 2022 Commonwealth Games gold medalist Amit had a perfect day for the Indian contingent as he defeated Mexico’s Mauricio Ruiz 4-1.
The national champion was under pressure in the first round, but picked up the pace in the last minute of that round and then turned the match around with several punch combinations in the third and final round to secure victory.
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