Boxing, Strandja Memorial: Nikhat Zareen, Amit Panghal among six Indians through to the final

Two time world champion Nikhat Zareen and Commonwealth Games gold medallist Amit Panghal put up a dominating show to enter their respective finals along with the four other Indian boxers at the 75th Strandja Memorial Tournament in Sofia, Bulgaria on Saturday.

Zareen (50kg) was in action for the first semi-final of the day. With the crowd support behind the Bulgarian pugilist Zlatislava Chukanova, Zareen started the bout cautiously, taking some time to get into the rhythm but did not lose hold of the game as she won the round 3-2.

The Indian was clinical in the second round, giving no room to her Bulgarian opponent to form an attack while delivering some accurate blows. Zareen continued her domination in the third round as she maintained the composure, giving her opponent no chance of a comeback to seal the match with a 5-0 verdict.

She will take on Uzbekistan’s Sabina Bobokulova in the gold medal match on Sunday.

It was an easy day at the office for Panghal (51kg) as he won his third consecutive match with a unanimous 5-0 decision. Panghal faced Turkey’s Gumus Samet and looked comfortable right from the start.

He used his experience to attack when needed while smartly using his footwork to get away...

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