Six Indians storm into finals at World Boxing Cup in Astana

India will be eyeing at least six gold medals on the final day of the World Boxing Cup in Astana, Kazakhstan, on Sunday, after a dominant showing by its pugilists in the semifinals on Saturday.

Meenakshi (women’s 48kg), Sakshi (women’s 54kg), Pooja Rani (women’s 80kg), Hitesh Gulia (men’s 70kg), and Jugnoo (men’s 85kg) notched up convincing wins to book their spots in the finals.

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With 11 medals already confirmed, India’s tally may yet grow, as Abhinash Jamwal (men’s 65kg) was set to fight for a place in the final later on Saturday.

Meenakshi set the tone for India’s charge with an aggressive performance, defeating Turkey’s Nurselen Yalgettekin 5:0 in the 48kg semifinal. Sakshi followed suit, dominating Uzbekistan’s Feruza Kazakova by the same margin in the 54 kg category to secure her place in the final.

Olympian Pooja Rani battled hard to overcome a late surge from Turkey’s Elif Guneri in the women’s 80kg semifinal, edging through with a 3:2 split verdict. On Friday, Nupur had already made it to the final in the 80+ kg category, ensuring that four Indian women will contest gold on Sunday.

In the women’s 60 kg category, Sanju gave her all but went down 0:5 to Kazakhstan’s Viktoriya Grafeyeva. She will return home with a bronze medal.

Hitesh Gulia, a gold medalist from the Brazil leg earlier this year, had a shaky start against France’s Makan Traore but bounced back strongly in the later rounds to clinch a place in the 70 kg final.

Jugnoo capped off a successful day for India with a commanding 5:0 victory over England’s Teagn Scott in the 85 kg category.

India had won six medals in the Brazil leg of the World Boxing Cup earlier this year, which featured only male boxers. This is the first time that Indian women boxers are competing at the World Boxing Cup, and they have made a resounding impact.