Nikhat Zareen ensures India’s 1st medal in women’s World Boxing Championships

New Delhi: India were assured Monday of at least three medals at the IBA Women’s World Boxing Championships in Istanbul. Boxers Nikhat Zareen (52kg), Manisha (57kg) and Parveen (63kg) continued their stellar run and advanced to the semifinals of their respective categories. By sealing the semifinal spot, the boxers are assured of a bronze medal even if they lose.

Nikhat Zareen out-punched England’s Charley-Sian Davison 5-0 while young Parveen got the better off Shoira Zulkaynarova of Tajikistan by an identical margin. Manisha, on the other hand, dispatched Mongolia’s Namuun Monkhor in a hard-fought quarterfinal by a 4-1 split decision.

Continuing her stellar run from the prestigious Strandja Memorial tournament where she won the gold earlier this year, Nikhat handed India their first medal at this year’s tournament with an impressive victory.

The 25-year-old Telangana boxer was all pumped up in her highly physical bout against Davison. Both boxers attacked each other ferociously in the first round. However, the second round was a one way street as Nikhat pounded her opponent with terrific body shots to tire her out while also landing clean and sharp punches.

With the two rounds in the bag, Nikhat then displayed her defensive skills. She no longer felt the need to be on the offensive in the final few minutes of her quarterfinal bout.

“My opponent was taller than me today, so my strategy was to block her right hand which is her strength. I am delighted to give India the first medal, hope I can win the gold,” Nikhat said after the bout.

The 24-year-old Manisha moved around the ring and used her long reach to great effect as she had three clean punches in the closely fought last eight contest. Manisha will take on Italy’s Irma Testa next.

In the fourth Indian bout of the day, Parveen initially seemed hesitant to attack and looked out of depth but as the seconds ticked away and coach Bhaskar Bhatt and the support staff encouraged her to go forward and attack from the sideline, the Haryana boxer gained confidence to notch up a memorable win.

However, Nitu (48kg) ended her campaign with a 2-3 split verdict quarterfinal loss to reigning Asian champion Alua Balkibekova of Kazakhstan, while  two-time Asian champion Pooja Rani’s (81kg) campaign also came to an end as she went down 2-3 via a split verdict to Australia’s Jessica Bagley.