Boxing Men's World Championships: Sumit sails into pre-quarters after outpunching Abdumalik Boltaev

Belgrade: Indian boxer Sumit (75kg) sailed into the pre-quarterfinals of the AIBA Men’s World Championships in Belgrade on Saturday after notching up a comprehensive victory over Tajikistan’s Abdumalik Boltaev. Sumit prevailed 5-0 in the bout against Boltaev, who wasn’t lacking in intent but was definitely nowhere close to the Indian when it came to punching cleanly. Sumit also copped a warning in the second round for hitting Boltaev on the back of his head repeatedly despite being cautioned by the referee but the docking of one point had no impact on his control over the proceedings as he emerged a unanimous victor. Sumit will face Cuba’s Yoenlis Hernandez in the pre-quarterfinals on Monday. However, Sachin (80kg), who got a first-round bye, lost 1-4 to American Robby Gonzales in another last-32 contest. The Indian seemed up for an intense showdown in the opening round but ran out of steam against Gonzales, who put his long range to good use by poking through the Indian’s defences. In a late night bout on Friday, Nishant Dev (71kg) rallied to defeat Mauritian Merven Clair 4-1 to also secure a pre-quarterfinal berth. He will be up against Mexico’s Alvarez Verde in the Last-16 round on Sunday. Later this evening, five-time Asian medallist Shiva Thapa (63.5kg) will fight Sierra Leone’s John Brown in the round of 32. Govind Sahani (48kg) will compete in the pre-quarterfinals against Georgia’s Sakhil Alakhverdovi. Apart from Nishant, three more Indian boxers will compete in the pre-quarterfinals stage on Sunday. Asian champion Sanjeet (92kg) will take on Georgia’s Giorgi Tchigladze while Akash Kumar (54kg), who received a walkover in the last round, and Narender (+92kg) will face Puerto Rico’s Caleb Tirado and Tajikistan’s Jakhon Qurbonov respectively. The gold winners at the showpiece will walk away with a prize money of $100,000. The silver medallists are to be given $50,000, and both bronze-medallists will be awarded $25,000 each. The total prize purse stands at a whopping $2.6 million. India are being represented by its reigning national champions across weight categories.