Boxer Amit Panghal beats the odds and punches his way to a gold

India's Amit Panghal (right) punches Hasanboy Dusmatov of Uzbekistan during the 49kg Light Flyweight final in Jakarta on Saturday. Pic/PTI

Hit and run is a rather displeasing act associated with road accidents, but in the case of boxer Amit Panghal, 22, the act was not just pleasing to the eye of many a boxing aficionado on Saturday, it also won him the Asian Games gold.

Up against a seasoned campaigner in reigning Olympic and Asian champion Hasanboy Dusmatov of Uzbekistan, Asian Games debutante Panghal brilliantly outsmarted his opponent in the 49kg Light Flyweight final at the JIE Expo Hall on Saturday.

The armyman used his quick combination punches to his advantage and time and again entered into close combat to hit his opponent and then jump out of the fray to avoid his counterpunches. Panghal made his intentions clear in the very first round, when he watched Dusmatov closely for a good 20 seconds or so before stepping in close, landing two blows and stepping out. He did this twice more, and though he conceded a couple of blows too, he impressed four of the five judges with his one-two combo blows and they ruled Round One in his favour.

In the second round, Dusmatov came out all guns blazing and landed a few blows on the Indian, having to reach out for most of the time, since Panghal stayed away from his range. Panghal then stepped in and executed a right hook that rattled Dusmatov for a second before he regained his composure and got back at the Indian twice. Three of the five judges awarded the round to Dusmatov.

Round Three, was another close affair, as both boxers indulged in a mini slugfest. To Panghal's good fortune, the judges were not swayed by Dusmatov's reputation and voted a close 3-2 in favour of the Indian.

Indian boxing's high performance director Santiago Nieva said that Amit's combination punches were too much to handle for Dusmatov: "Whenever Amit jumped in to land his combinations, Dusmatov didn't react fast enough. To take one step forward sometimes you have to take two back," he said.

Coach AC Kutappa said Amit fought a near-perfect bout. "Our plan was clear - not to go into Dusmatov's close or medium range - we wanted Amit to remain at long range, but hit and come out, hit and come out, so that way he scores points very clearly and judges have no doubt. Remember Dusmatov is an Olympic champion, so his reputation precedes him."

For Panghal meanwhile, it was all about getting his revenge. "I just wanted to avenge my defeat to him [last year at the World Championships] at all costs," he said proudly holding up his gold medal and posing for selfies with anyone and everyone in the crowd.

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