Bangkok (Thailand):Commonwealth Games gold medallist Amit Panghal relied on his quickfire movement and combination of jabs and uppercuts to overcome a slow start and earn a unanimous 5:0 verdict against China’s Liu Chuang in the 51kg quarterfinals of the Boxing World Qualifiers to become the fifth Indian boxer to earn a Paris Olympic quota on Sunday.
India had earned three quotas at the 2022 Asian Games through Nikhat Zareen (women’s 50kg), Preeti (54kg) and Tokyo Olympics bronze medallist Lovlina Borgohain (75kg) by virtue of all of them finishing on the podium in Guangzhou, China. Nishant Dev became the first Indian male boxer to secure a Paris berth earlier this week when he defeated Moldova’s Vasile Cebotari in the 71kg quarterfinals.
Panghal added to that list on Saturday with a fine display of tenacity and aggression against Chunag, who had drawn first blood by claiming Round 1 4:1 on the back some fine punches. But the Indian national champion came out all guns blazing in Round 2 and attacked relentlessly to grab the advantage, impressing all the five judges. The deciding round was a frantic display of boxing by both pugilists as they attempted to outpunch each other.