Assam’s Shiva Thapa qualify for Semis in National Boxing C’ship

GUWAHATI: Six-time Asian medalist Shiva Thapa and 2019 World Championships bronze medalist Manish Kaushik put in strong performances on day five and squared off in the semi-finals of the 6th Elite Men’s National Boxing Championship in Hisar, Haryana.

Shiva Thapa (63.5 kg), representing Assam, had to break a sweat in his quarter-final against Punjab’s Ashutosh Kumar.
Makar, who also holds a bronze medal at the 2015 World Championships, was at his attacking best and produced a sensational display of skill and power to secure a 5:0 unanimous decision victory over his opponent. .

Kaushik (63.5kg), on the other hand, is representing the Services Sports Control Board (SSCB) and was up against Manipur’s Rohit Ningehougan Singh.

Like Thapa, the 2018 Commonwealth Games silver medalist portrayed his attacking dominance by blanking his opponent to win by unanimous decision.
Thapa and Kaushik will square off against each other in a highly anticipated semi-final encounter and will give it their all to secure their spot in the final.

Meanwhile, Railway Sports Promotion Board’s (RSPB) Varinder Singh (60kg) took on 2018 Commonwealth Games champion Gaurav Solanki of Haryana in a high-profile bout.
Displaying superb technical prowess, Varinder was able to outplay Solanki with ease and secure a dominant 5:0 win.

The 2021 Asian Championship bronze medalist will face Uttar Pradesh’s Sunil Chouhan in his semi-final.

Another RSPB pugilist, Rohit Tokas (67kg) produced a brilliant display to win over Nishchaya of the All India Police (AIP).
The 2022 Commonwealth Games bronze medalist made light work of his opponent in a 5-0 win, combining his quick movements with accurate punches and dodging attacks. He will face Abhinash Jamwal of Himachal Pradesh in the semi-finals.

SSCB’s two-time Commonwealth Games bronze medalist Muhammad Hassamuddin (57kg) sealed his place in the final four with a 5-0 win over Uttar Pradesh’s Manish Rathod.
He will take on 2019 Asian Championship silver medalist Ashish Kumar of Himachal Pradesh in his semi-final.

The 2022 Asian Championship bronze medalist pair of Govind Sahani (48kg) and Sumit (75kg) also reached the semi-finals.
Govind defeated Uttar Pradesh’s Vikash Singh with a scoreline of 5-0, Sumit had a comfortable victory over Delhi’s Gourav Dabas after the referee stopped the contest (RSC) in the first round.

A total of 386 boxers of 13 different weight categories are participating in the championship.

All semi-finals will be played on Thursday.