Parveen, Ankush and Narender Seal Asian Games Boxing Medals

Parveen Hooda, Ankush Panghal and Narender Berwal assured India of three boxing medals after winning their Asian Games quarterfinals on Sunday, while Sachin Siwach’s run ended in the last-eight stage.

Parveen advanced to the women’s 65kg semifinals with a unanimous 5-0 victory over Uzbekistan’s world championships silver medallist Navbakhor Khamidova. Ankush also won 5-0, defeating Tajikistan’s Nekruz Salimov in the men’s 80kg quarterfinal, while Narender stopped Thailand’s Adthapong Saengtep in under two minutes in the +90kg division.

The three semifinal places guaranteed medals for India in the boxing competition. Narender added another assured Asian Games podium finish after having won bronze at the previous edition, while Ankush booked a medal on his Asian Games debut.

Three quarterfinal wins secure podium places

Parveen was contesting her first bout of the ongoing edition after receiving a walkover in the previous round, but she showed no apparent rust against Khamidova. The Indian landed combination punches effectively on her way to a clean decision and a place in the last four.

After the bout, Parveen said her preparation centred on controlling the distance and counter-punching. “I’m feeling very good. My coaches made a plan for how to fight. I managed the distance well and focused on counter-punching. That was our strategy for the bout,” she said.

Parveen had previously won bronze at the Asian Games, but that medal was later taken away after the International Testing Agency suspended her for 22 months for a whereabouts failure. Since returning from suspension late last year, she has moved from 57kg to 65kg.

She said she was regaining belief following her time away from the sport. “I’m getting my confidence back. Being away from your sport for so long makes you doubt yourself and wonder how you’ll perform in the future,” Parveen said. “But now I feel confident again and want to achieve even more than what I lost during that time away.”

Narender’s route to the semifinals was the quickest of the three Indian victories. The super heavyweight forced referee intervention against Saengtep in less than two minutes after delivering a series of heavy blows. The Thai boxer received three standing counts before the contest was stopped.

Ankush, fresh from winning Commonwealth Games gold in Glasgow last month according to the source, delivered a controlled performance against Salimov. He started strongly, landing clean singles including a straight left and a right hook as he kept the Tajik boxer on the back foot.

Ankush closes out unanimous decision as Sachin exits

Ankush took the opening round on all five cards and maintained his authority in the second. Salimov attempted to reduce the distance and seek countering opportunities, but Ankush continued to find openings and again received all five cards for the round.

With a substantial advantage entering the final round, Ankush managed the contest while keeping Salimov at range. The Tajik boxer tried to raise the tempo and landed a few punches, but Ankush had already established the lead needed to complete the 5-0 decision.

“In the first two rounds I boxed at long range, and I had already won those two rounds. After that the opponent was just passing the time,” Ankush said. He added that he was focused on the next stage despite having secured a medal.

Sachin, however, was beaten 0-5 by Japan’s Shunsuke Kitamoto in the men’s 60kg quarterfinal. The defeat ended his campaign, leaving Parveen, Ankush and Narender as India’s three medal-assured boxers from the day’s quarterfinal action.