Strandja Memorial: Amit, Sachin strike gold; Nikhat loses
Sofia (Bulgaria), February 11
World Championships medallist Amit Panghal and Sachin Siwach struck gold, while Nikhat Zareen and three other Indian boxers signed off with silver medals at the 75th Strandja Memorial tournament here today.
Panghal, the 2019 Championships silver medallist, pulled off a dominating 5-0 triumph over Kazakhstan’s Sanzhar Tashkenbay in the men’s flyweight (51kg) final.
Sachin (57kg), a world youth champion, changed the colour of his medal from the last edition, turning bronze into gold as he out-punched Uzbekistan’s Shakhzod Muzafarov for a 5-0 verdict.
However, two-time world champion Zareen (50kg), Arundhati Choudhary (66kg), Barun Singh Shagolshem (48kg) and Rajat (67kg) settled for silver medals. India signed off with a haul of eight medals — two gold, four silver, and a couple of bronze in this edition of the event.
In a commanding performance, Panghal landed powerful punches, dominating Tashkenbay with pinpoint precision and speed in his attack. Panghal, who had clinched the bronze medal in 2017 and back-to-back gold in 2018 and 2019, was on target on most occasions with his trademark jab and left hook.
As the bout progressed, the Commonwealth and Asian Games champion became more dominant, securing his fourth consecutive unanimous decision win of the tournament. Despite his dominant run, Panghal will not be competing at the Paris Olympics qualifiers later this month. The Armyman from Haryana has lost his spot in the Indian team to 2023 Worlds bronze medallist Deepak Bhoria.
Sachin took some time to settle but the Haryana boxer grew in confidence as the bout progressed and used his height advantage while timing his punches to perfection.
Zareen went down to 20-year-old junior Asian champion Sabina Bobokulova of Uzbekistan, who earlier beat Asian Games champion Wu Yu in the semifinals.
The first six minutes of the bout were intense with both boxers going at each other. However, Zareen wasn’t tight enough with her defence and Bobokulova was able to land decisive punches on the counterattack. Bobokulova was solid defensively and her quick head movements made it difficult for Zareen to connect the punches.
Trailing after the first two rounds, Zareen came out all guns blazing in the final three minutes. She was able to land clean punches and won the round but Bobokulova had done enough as the judges ruled in her favour.
