LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND — Two-time World champion Nikhat Zareen secured her place in the quarterfinals of the World Boxing Championships on Tuesday, overcoming Japan’s Yuna Nishinaka with a decisive 5-0 victory in their women’s 51kg round-of-16 bout, as reported by Sportstar. The win was a testament to Zareen’s resilience, coming in a challenging contest that saw her adapt to her opponent’s tactics.
A Hard-Fought Victory
The fight proved to be a test of patience for the Indian boxer, who trailed 2-3 in the opening round amid a series of head shots and frequent clinching that at times resembled a wrestling match. Despite landing some clean punches, Zareen’s signature fluent boxing and movement were hampered. The bout turned decisively in her favor, however, when Nishinaka was penalized two points in both the second and third rounds for repeatedly resorting to holding tactics. Zareen will now prepare to face Turkey’s Buse Naz Cakiroglu in the quarterfinals on Wednesday.
Indian Boxers Bow Out
While Zareen moved on, several other Indian boxers saw their campaigns end in the pre-quarterfinals. Lakshya Chahar bowed out in the men’s 80kg category after a 0-3 defeat to France’s Yojerlin Cesar. In other men’s bouts, Sachin Siwach (60kg) lost 1-4 to Kazakhstan’s Biibars Zhexen, Sumit Kundu (75kg) was defeated 0-5 by top seed Rami Kiwan of Bulgaria, and Narender Berwal (90+kg) put up a strong fight before going down 1-4 to top seed Diego Lenzi of Italy. In the women’s section, Neeraj Phogat suffered a narrow 2-3 defeat to England’s Sacha Hickey in the 65kg category.
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