NEW DELHI, May 12: Indian boxer Anamika (50kg) showed her prowess and technical superiority to advance to the pre-quarterfinals of the IBA Women’s World Boxing Championships, beating Romania’s Eugenia Anghel by unanimous decision in Istanbul on Thursday.
The bout started on an aggressive note as both the boxers relentlessly attacked from the word go but Anamika displayed her sharp footwork and body feints to land clear punches while evading her opponent’s counters.
The boxer from Rohtak continued her relentless attack in the second round and didn’t let her opponent settle down. She dictated the terms throughout the whole bout and comfortably won by 5-0 margin to move to the next round.
Anamika will next face World Championships bronze medallist Kristy Lee Harris of Australia in the round-of-16 bout on Sunday.
Later on Thursday, two other Indian pugilists — Shiksha (54kg) and Jaismine (60kg) — are also set to begin their challenge at the prestigious tournament, which has been witnessing high voltage competition in presence of record 310 boxers from 73 countries across the world.
Shiksha will be up against Argentina’s Herrera Milagros Rosario in the 54kg opening round match while Jaismine (60kg) will square off against two-time youth Asian champion Porntip Buapa of Thailand.
Two-time Asian champion Pooja Rani (81kg) and Tokyo Olympic bronze medallist Lovlina Borgohain (70kg) will play their respective round-of-16 bouts on Friday.
Pooja, who will begin her World Championships campaign, will take on Hungary’s Timea Nagy while Lovlina will fight against Cindy Ngamba of Fair Chance Team. Lovlina had defeated former world champion Chen Nien-Chin in the first round on Monday.
Late on wednesday, Saweety (75kg) went down fighting against England’s Kerry Davis and lost the bout by 2-3.
In the last edition of the tournament, held in Russia in 2019, Indian boxers secured one silver and three bronze medals. (PTI)
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