Belgrade, October 29
Asian champion Sanjeet (92kg) defeated Russia’s Andrei Stotskii in a thoroughly entertaining contest to enter the pre-quarterfinals, while Akash Kumar (54kg) got a walkover in another good day for Indians at the AIBA men’s World Boxing Championships here today.
Sanjeet put up quite a show in the 4-1 win over Stotskii, who was not a pushover by any measure. The Indian, however, was the more attacking of the two, at least in the first two rounds.
Sanjeet displayed some flamboyance to go with his skills, dropping his guard completely to taunt Stotskii on more than one occasion. The two exchanged blows but also smiled frequently at each other, fighting at a languid but engaging pace.
Akash advanced after his German opponent Omar Salah Ibrahim fell ill and gave him a walkover. He will face Puerto Rico’s Pagan Caleb Tirado in the last-16 stage.
“His opponent did not show up for the weigh-in this morning as he was sick. Something like what happened to us in Varinder Singh’s case. In that case, we suffered, today we gained,” India High Performance Director Santiago Nieva said.
Varinder had to pull out of his 60kg category bout due to high fever but he tested negative for Covid-19.
Late last night, Akash Sangwan (67kg) recorded a confident 4-1 victory against German pugilist Daniel Krotter to also enter the pre-quarterfinals. The 21-year-old will next square off against Cuban boxer Kevin Brown. — PTI
For all the latest Sports News Click Here
