Sumit Kundu proves too good for Ankit Khatana in National Games boxing

Thailand Open gold medallist Sumit Kundu’s show of power tamed South Asian Games gold medallist Ankit Khatana in a men’s 75kg quarterfinal bout at the boxing arena of the National Games here on Monday.

Sumit, who had a first round bye, recorded an impressive 4-0 win to set up a semifinal date with Nikhil Dubey of Maharashtra.

Amid trading of blows, Sumit stayed ahead by landing fast hands on Ankit. Ankit, who displayed some fine counters, lowered his guard and invited Sumit for more exchanges in the third round, but the Services boxer stayed safe and emerged as the winner.

National champion Sachin Kumar quelled a strong challenge from taller Punjab youngster Kartik to post a 5-0 win in a 80kg bout. 

Masterclass

Asian champion Sanjeet’s performance was a masterclass for his rival Harsh Kaushik in a 92kg bout.

Despite running high fever, Worlds bronze medallist Jamuna Boro managed well to box from a long range and script a 5-0 win in a women’s 57kg contest.

The women’s 66kg weight saw the fall of some achievers. World youth bronze medallist Astha Pahwa, who served two standing counts, was beaten 5-0 by Manipur’s Alena Thounaojam. National champion Anjali Tushir was ousted by Elorda Cup bronze medallist Lalita with a 5-0 verdict.

However, World youth gold medallist Ankushita Boro sailed into the last-four.

Important results (quarterfinals):

Men: 75kg: Sumit Kundu (SSCB) bt Ankit Khatana (Har) 4-0, Nikhil Dubey (Mah) bt Buntee Singh (Del) 5-0; 80kg: Sachin Kumar (SSCB) bt Kartik (Pun) 5-0, Vinit (Har) bt Rahul Rathi (Del) 3-2; 92kg: Naveen Kumar (Har) bt Harish Yadav (UP) RSC-R2, Kanwarpreet Singh (Pun) bt Parvesh Musharaf (TN) 5-0, Sanjeet (SSCB) bt Harsh Kaushik (Del) RSC-R3; +92kg: Narender (SSCB) bt Sagar Singh (Utk) RSC-I R3, Reynold Joseph (Mah) bt Tarun Sharma (Raj) 4-1, Mohit (Har) bt Jaipal Singh (Pun) 3-2.

Women: 57kg: Jamuna Boro (Asm) bt Sapna Sharma (Raj) 5-0, Mandeep Kaur (Pun) bt Radha Patidar (MP) 5-0; 66kg: Ankushita Boro (Asm) bt Paramjit Kaur (Guj) RSC-R2, Lalita (Raj) bt Anjali Tushir (Del) 5-0, Alena Thounaojam (Man) bt Astha Pahwa (UP) 5-0, Komalpreet Kaur (Pun) bt Shruti Yadav (UP) 4-1.