National Boxing Championships: Panghal, Thapa sail into semifinals

Shillong: World Championships runner-up Amit Panghal (51kg) and 2021 Asian Champion Sanjeet (92kg) continued their impressive run as 12 SSCB boxers secured semifinal spots at the Men's National Boxing Championships here on Thursday.

Six-time Asian Championships medallist Shiva Thapa, representing Assam, also progressed to the last-four stage.

Panghal dominated the proceedings throughout and ultimately won the bout comfortably in a unanimous decision against Mohammad Aarif of Jammu and Kashmir.

He will next face Ankit of RSPB in the semifinals.

Up against 2018 Commonwealth Games bronze medallist Naman Tanwar of RSPB, Sanjeet was at the top of his game as he controlled the bout and played from a distance, landing hard punches throughout to register a win with a unanimous decision in the 92kg quarter-final.

Sanjeet will take on All India Police's (AIP) Vicky in the semifinals.

The other 10 SSCB boxers who qualified for the semifinals include Barun Singh (48kg), Pawan (54kg), Sachin (57kg), Akash (60kg), Vanshaj (63.5kg), Rajat (67kg), Akash (71kg), Deepak (75kg), Lakshya (80kg), Jugnoo (86kg).

In other significant bouts, Thapa showcased his skill set and power packed punches to secure a commanding 5-0 victory over Shashank Pradhan of Delhi to set up a clash against Harivansh Tawari of Maharashtra.

Commonwealth Games silver medallist Sagar (92+kg), who represents RSPB, was up against Navjot Singh of Chandigarh. He started the bout with an aggressive approach and landed a flurry of hard hitting punches in the first round itself that led to the referee stopping the contest.

He will fight it out against Vishal Kumar of Delhi.