Asian Games: Narender wins bronze in heavyweight boxing as Parveen, Ankush in finals

Narender Berwal

NEW DELHI: India’s Narender Berwal secured a bronze medal in the men’s +90kg boxing event at the Asian Games after losing his semifinal bout to Kazakhstan’s reigning world champion Aibek Oralbay on Tuesday.Narender struggled to match Oralbay’s pace and power in a one-sided contest, going down 0-5 on the judges’ scorecards. The Indian boxer lost all three rounds by unanimous decision and missed out on a place in the gold-medal bout.

Despite Narender’s defeat, it was a productive day for Indian boxing, with Parveen Hooda and Ankush Panghal winning their respective semifinals to advance to the finals. The pair’s victories helped India surpass its four-medal haul from the previous edition, with six Indian boxers now assured of medals at Aichi-Nagoya Games.Asian Games Full Coverage | Medal Tally | Schedule

Narender unable to trouble reigning world champion

Oralbay took charge from the opening bell, winning the first round 5-0 to put Narender under immediate pressure. The Indian needed a strong response in the second round, but the Kazakh boxer continued to dominate and secured another 5-0 verdict on the judges’ cards.Narender was unable to mount a turnaround in the final round, which Oralbay also won 5-0. The semifinal loss ended the Indian’s run at the Games, but he leaves with a bronze medal after reaching the last four in the heavyweight category.

Parveen, Ankush storm into gold-medal bouts

Earlier, Parveen defeated China’s Li Shu 5-0 in the women’s 65kg semifinal to book her place in the final. The win marks an improvement on her bronze-medal finish at Hangzhou, a result that was later annulled after the International Testing Agency suspended her for 22 months over a whereabouts failure.

Parveen has also become only the third Indian woman boxer to reach an Asian Games final, following MC Mary Kom, who won gold in 2014, and Lovlina Borgohain, who claimed silver at the previous edition.Ankush then produced a stirring comeback in the men’s 80kg semifinal, rallying from behind to beat Uzbekistan’s reigning world champion Fazliddin Erkinboev. After losing the opening round 4-1, Ankush took the second 3-2 before sweeping the final round 5-0 to seal his place in the gold-medal bout.Narender’s bronze and the two semifinal wins added to India’s boxing medal count, with six pugilists having secured medal-round places at the Games.