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Indian star pugilists Nikhat Zareen (52kg), Manisha (57kg) and Parveen (63kg) were all guns blazing as they cruised into the semi-finals of the IBA Women's World Boxing Championships in their respective categories in Istanbul on Monday (May 16).
Confirming their first World Championships medals with a place in the semifinals, Nikhat out-punched England’s Charley-Sian Davison 5-0 while young Parveen got the better off Shoira Zulkaynarova of Tajikistan with 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 its 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 were attacking 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 as 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 former junior world champion will next square off against Caroline De Almeida of Brazil, who thrashed the 2018 Commonwealth Games silver winner Carly McNaul of Ireland by unanimous decision.
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 contests. 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 the 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. There was a bit of confusion with Pooja's result as the announcer mixed up the name of the two boxers.
Nitu, who is a two-time youth world champion, started the bout cautiously, enticing her opponent to come at her but struggled to land punches herself.
The Indian tried hard to break Balkibekova's defences as the Kazakh boxer moved around swiftly. Nitu managed to up the ante in the final round but it was too late as the judges ruled in her opponent's favour.
Meanwhile, Anamika and Jaismine fell short in their debut appearance at the boxing championship after losing 0-5 and 1-4 in their respective bouts. Anamika lost to Rio Olympics bronze medallist Colombia's Ingrit Valencia, while Jaismine succumbed to Rashida Ellis of the USA.
Nandini, who received a first-round bye, was handed a 0-5 loss by Morocco's Khadija Mardiin in her opening bout.
In another bout, two-time Asian champion Pooja went down 2-3 also via a split verdict to Australia's Jessica Bagley. There was confusion with Pooja's result as the announcer mixed up the name of the two boxers. Nitu, who is a two-time youth world champion, started the bout cautiously, enticing her opponent to come at her but struggled to land punches herself.
