National Women’s Boxing Championships: World silver medallist Manju Rani off to a winning start

Hisar: World Championships silver medallist Manju Rani put up a solid show to begin her 48kg category campaign on a winning note at the Women’s National Boxing Championships in Hisar on Saturday. Railway Sports Promotion Board’s boxer Manju, who had won a silver on debut at the 2019 World Championships, made light work of Orissa’s Bhabani Barik in a 5-0 win in the 48kg on the third day of competitions at the St Joseph’s International School. Haryana’s Nitu also delivered an equally flawless performance as she beat Rajasthan’s Swasti Arya by a similar margin in another one-sided 48kg bout. In the second round of the 50kg category, Punjab’s Komal and Andhra Pradesh’s Ramya Guduru registered hard-fought victories. While Komal recovered well in time against Madhya Pradesh’s Deepa Kumar to win 3-2, Andhra Pradesh’s Ramya Guduru defeated Uttar Pradesh’s Rinky Kishor 4-1. Earlier on Friday night, two-time Asian champion and Tokyo Olympian Pooja Rani started her campaign with a comfortable 5-0 win against All India Police’s Pinki 5-0. The event is being organised by Boxing Federation of India (BFI) in association with the Haryana Boxing Sangh.