Nikhat Zareen, a star boxer from India, continued her dominance over Carly McNaul of Northern Ireland on Saturday and won gold in the 48–50 kg flyweight division at the Commonwealth Games 2022 in Birmingham.
India has won four gold medals today, for a total of 17 in Birmingham. India has surpassed New Zealand to take fourth place in the overall medal standings after Nikhat’s gold medal victory.
Amit Panghal, a prominent Indian boxer, triumphed in the men’s flyweight division by avenging his defeat in the championship match from the previous CWG edition, while Neetu Ghanghas, who dominated in her CWG debut, also won gold. Panghal (48-51kg) fell to his English counterpart in the Gold Coast four years prior, but the 26-year-old exacted revenge this time around by defeating McDonald Kieran of England 5-0.
How Nikhat Zareen Bout unfolded?
Even though it took both fighters some time to settle in during the opening round, Nikhat narrowly won it 5-0. An effective left hook was followed by a second round of strong blows. Nikhat’s succession of violent assaults left MC Naul with little room for manoeuvre.
In the second round, MC Naul came out swinging and they traded a lot more blows, but with 50 seconds left, it was clear that Nikhat had the upper hand and was wearing out MC Naul. Nikhat let MC Naul pursue her, but the latter was easily fended off.
In the third round, it seemed as though MC Naul was in a desperate state and chose to attack Nikhat once more. But it didn’t seem to make much of a difference.
Nikhat took her time, knowing that she had the advantage after the first two rounds. And as the last bell rang, she lifted her hands in triumph. The verdict was released, and it was a gold. She knelt down to express her joy after being declared the winner by a unanimous vote of the judges.
Nikhat’s Campaign through CWG 22
In the round of 16 match, Nikhat’s CWG 2022 campaign got underway against Helena Ismael Bagao of Mozambique. The first round was won by Nikhat by a score of 5-0, with each of the five judges giving him a perfect score. In the subsequent round, she defeated her opponent once more by a score of 5-0. Nikhat dominated the third round to the point where the referee had to call time on the match.
Helen Jones of Wales was Nikhat’s opponent in the quarterfinal. As anticipated, Nikhat performed at her peak and defeated her opponent 5-0 to win the first round. Nikhat also scored a perfect 10 in the second round and triumphed 5-0. The third round saw Helen land some solid blows, but Nikhat would respond forcefully and charged into the final frame.
Nikhat’s semifinal opponent was Savannah Alfia Stubley of England, and this time around as well, Nikhat continued to dominate. Nikhat proceeded to the finals with a unanimous 5-0 win despite strong opposition from her rival in all three of the rounds.
Nikhat Zareen congratulated by Prime Minister Modi
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