Bangkok (Thailand): Five Indian men pugilists will join their seven women compatriots in the semifinals of the U19 Asian Boxing Championships 2025 in the Thai capital on Thursday after registering convincing victories to reach the semifinals of their respective weight categories and assure themselves of a medal.
Shivam (55kg), Mausam Suhag (65kg), Rahul Kundu (75kg), Gaurav (85kg), and Hemant Sangwan (90kg) took down their opponents in style to ensure that India will come back with 12 medals from the U19 category.
Shivam started India’s winning march in the morning session when he utterly dominated Uzbekistan’s Abdulaziz Abdunazarov for a 5:0 win. Mausam Suhag was then pushed to the corner, but the youngster kept his composure under pressure to eke out a 3:2 win in the 65kg quarterfinals against Mukhammed Alimbekov of Kyrgyzstan.
Rahul Kundu then went on a rampage against Eunjo Jeong of South Korea, and the referee had to ultimately stop the 75kg contest before Gaurav joined the three in the last four stage with a hard-fought victory over Kuang-Yao Cheng of Chinese Taipei in the 85kg category.
Hemant Sangwan then got the better of Muhammadrizo Siddikov of Uzbekistan in the 90kg weight category and raised hopes of a 100 per cent win record on Thursday. However, Krish fell short of pulling off a victory against Iran’s Abbas Gharshasbi in a close 90+kg bout.
The U19 and U22 Asian Boxing Championships, which are being held simultaneously, provide India’s rising stars a platform to showcase their skills and determination against some of Asia’s toughest opponents. India has fielded a strong contingent of 40 boxers — 20 in each age group — with a perfect mix of proven champions and potential talents who have impressed in the domestic circuit.
India are also assured of 13 medals in the U22 category with five boxers set to fight for gold.
(IANS)
