Glasgow, Jul 28 (PTI): Asian Games bronze medallist Preeti Pawar and reigning Asian champion Priya Ghanghas assured India of two medals in boxing after advancing to the semifinals of their respective weight categories with contrasting wins at the Commonwealth Games, here on Tuesday.
Jadumani Singh also confirmed a third medal of the day from the boxing ring after defeating Zambia’s Mwengo Mwale 5-0 by unanimous decision in the men’s 55kg quarterfinal.
Jadumani produced a dominant performance to sweep all five judges’ scorecards and book his place in the semifinals, securing at least a bronze medal for India.
Preeti, competing in the women’s 54kg division, outclassed Northern Ireland’s Nicole Clyde 5-0 by unanimous decision to book her place in the last four and guarantee herself at least a bronze medal.
The 22-year-old Indian dictated the opening round with sharp movement and crisp combinations, repeatedly piercing her opponent’s guard with clusters of punches. The judges reflected her superiority, awarding the opening round 10-9 in her favour on four scorecards and 10-8 on the fifth.
She maintained the same intensity in the second round, showcasing her superior speed, accuracy and ringcraft. Once again, she swept all five judges’ scorecards, earning 10-9 from three judges and 10-8 from the remaining two to take complete control of the bout.
With the result virtually sealed, Preeti stayed composed in the final round, displaying an impressive range of punches and excellent shot selection to complete a comprehensive unanimous-decision victory.
The medal will be the first Commonwealth Games podium finish of Preeti’s career. The Hangzhou Asian Games bronze medallist will next face Zambia’s Catherine Mwape in the semifinals.
Later, Priya, who won a gold at the Asian Championships in April in Ulaanbaatar, also entered the semifinals after overcoming local favourite Niamh Mitchell of Scotland by a 4-1 split decision in the women’s 60kg quarterfinal.
Having received a first-round bye, the 20-year-old Indian recovered brilliantly after dropping the opening round.
Mitchell edged the first round 4-1 on the judges’ scorecards, but Priya responded with greater aggression and cleaner punching to claim the second round by the identical 4-1 margin. Priya will face England’s Lucy Kings-Wheatley in the women’s 60kg semifinal for a place in the final.
Former Asian champion and World Championships bronze medallist Parveen Hooda however crashed out in the women’s 65kg quarterfinal after suffering a narrow 2-3 split-decision (WP) defeat to England’s Sacha Hickey.
The Indian lost the opening two rounds on a majority of the scorecards before finishing strongly to take the final round, but it was not enough to overturn the deficit. PTI TAP KHS AM TAP KHS
(This story is published as part of the auto-generated syndicate wire feed. No editing has been done in the headline or the body by ABP Live.)
