Young Indian women pugilists Nisha and Muskan showcased their skills by winning gold medals, while five others bagged silver in the U19 Asian Boxing Championships here on Sunday.
Of the 10 female boxers in the fray in the U19 category, nine will return with medals -- including two gold, 5 silver, and 2 bronze -- underlining the prowess of the Indians who competed against pugilists from Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and China among others.
Nisha raised her level in the 54kg category to dominate the third and final round against Sirui Yang of China to record a 4:1 win, while Muskan (57kg) coming out with an aggressive intent and staved off the challenge from Kazakhstan's Ayazhan Ermek for a 3:2 split verdict.
Aarti Kumari (75kg) lost to Tongtong Gu of China, while Kritika Wasan’s (80kg) efforts were not enough to avoid a 2:3 loss against Kuralay Yeginbaikyzy of Kazakhstan.
Parchi Tokas (80+kg) went down by an identical margin against Sobirakhon Shakhobidinova of Uzbekistan.
Vini went down against Sevara Mamatova of Uzbekistan in the 60kg final, while Arinda Akimoto of Japan got the better or Nisha 4:1 in the 65kg summit clash.
Three more boxers will be in action in the men's finals later in the day. India are also assured of 13 medals in the U22 category with five boxers set to fight for gold on Monday.
India has fielded a 40-member contingent in the U19 and U22 continental event.
This report includes content sourced from Press Trust of India (PTI), edited for clarity and context.
