Asian Games 2018: Boxer Amit Panghal punches above his weight to reach finals

India's Amit Panghal (left) lands a punch on Philippines's Carlo Paalam during the flyweight (46-49kg) category semi-final bout yesterday. Pic/PTI

Amit Panghal has surprised many by punching above his weight and reaching the gold medal match in the 49kg fly weight category, beating Phillipines's Carlo Paalam in a 3-2 split verdict here yesterday.

"While we expected medals from bigger names like Gaurav Solanki (2018 Commonwealth Games gold medallist) and Shiva Thapa (2015 World Boxing Championships bronze-winner), Amit has done exceedingly well here. "He is boxing with his brain and that's the key - smart boxing - which has seen him emerge as one of the best boxers in the team and now a gold medal contender," said a member of the Indian boxing contingent here.

Known to be good at counter-punching and landing crucial combination blows to earn his points, Panghal began a bit slowly yesterday and that made Paalam look good. However, instructions from Indian boxing team's high performance director Santiago Neiva and coach AC Kutappa saw the Rohtak boxer change his strategy after the break and become more aggressive.

Senior's guidance
Panghal, 22, is sharing his room here with veteran boxer Manoj Kumar and has been picking his senior's brains consistently. He has probably learnt to size up his opponents from the 2010 Commonwealth Games gold medallist, who lost in the earlier rounds here. "Manoj is constantly guiding me and keeping me informed about how to take on each opponent. It helps to have a senior providing you valuable tips all the time," said Panghal, who has a smart strategy going into most fights.

Assessing opponents
"I start off slowly so that I can wait and observe the opponent's weaknesses, and then I make my move accordingly. "You have to be aggressive in the middle and then at the end of the third round to create an impression on the judges," said the army boxer.

Earlier, Vikas Krishan pulled out of his 75kg middleweight semi-final against Kazakhstan's Amankul Abilkhan due to the reopening of a cut he had suffered on his left eye in one of his earlier rounds. Vikas settled for bronze. Next up for Panghal is Rio Olympics gold medallist Hasanboy Dusmatov, who has beaten the Indian in the 2017 World Championships before going on to clinch silver.

Dusmatov outpunched China's Wu Zonglin 5-0 in the other semi-final. It's a tough test for Panghal, but then, he is known to surprise one and all when it matters most!

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