Ashish Ranjan
World Boxing Championships: On Thursday, March 23, two of the four Indian boxers who advanced to the final four rounds at the 2023 IBA Women’s World Boxing Championships in New Delhi reached the final with authority. Nikhat Zareen, the defending champion, reached her second consecutive final at the world meet, while Nitu Ghanghas, a 22-year-old boxer, reached her first final at the World Championships, to the delight of the home audience in the capital city.
Nikhat Zareen reached the final of the women’s light flyweight (48 kg) division by defeating Colombian bronze medalist Ingrit Valencia by unanimous decision. Nikhat was at her most calculative throughout the entire match, outpunching Valencia in front of her home crowd.
Nikhat, who added a gold medal from the Commonwealth Games to her Strandja Boxing Memorial gold medal in 2022, is making all the proper noise in the year preceding the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris.
Nikhat joins the party 🤩🔥
Wins the bout 5️⃣-0️⃣ to enter the finals 💪
Book your tickets, to not miss the action 🔗:https://t.co/k8OoHXoAr8@AjaySingh_SG l @debojo_m#itshertime #WWCHDelhi #WorldChampionships @IBA_Boxing @Media_SAI pic.twitter.com/pFCL2kVY91
— Boxing Federation (@BFI_official) March 23, 2023
Thailand’s two-time bronze medalist at the world championships, Chuthamat Raksat, made Nikhat, who has emerged from the shadow of Mary Kom, work hard. After dominating the first two rounds, NIkhat paused in the third round, prompting a review of the fight.
After a few tense moments of anticipation, Nikhat was declared the victor of her quarterfinal match.
On Thursday, Nikhat easily defeated Ingrit, demonstrating her dominance over the rest of the field. In the second round, the unseeded Indian boxer exerted considerable effort against the top seed and African champion from Algeria, Boualam Boumaysa. Nikhat was one of three boxers who did not receive a first-round bye, but she maintained her composure to advance to the final once again.
Nitu Ghanghas, on the other hand, defeated Alua Balkibekova via split decision in her 48kg semi-final bout to advance to the final and give herself an opportunity to win the Gold medal. Nitu, who also won gold at the CWG in Birmingham, placed fifth at the previous global meet in Istanbul.
Notably, Nitu Ghanghas surged back in the second round after losing 2-3 to Kazakhstan’s Alua in the first round. In the final two rounds, the juvenile boxer maintained her composure to outpunch Alua and secure the victory.It was necessary to review Nitu’s semi-final fight because it was so close, notably in the third and final round.
