Lovlina Borgohain became the first woman in Indian history to reach 2 Asian Games boxing finals
Lovlina Borgohain became the first woman in Indian history to reach 2 Asian Games finals in boxing
Lovlina Borgohain became the first female boxer in Indian history to reach two Asian Games finals after defeating Kazakhstan’s Natalya Bogdanova in the women’s 75kg semi-final on Wednesday.
Hangzhou 2022 silver medalist Lovlina defeated the reigning 70kg world champion in a close fight to beat Bogdanova 3-2. The win put her in contention for another Asian Games gold, giving her the opportunity to go one step further than she did the previous year.
September 30 turned out to be a productive day for the Indian boxing contingent. Apart from Lovlina advancing to the final, Priya Ghanghas and Kapil Pokhriyal claimed bronze medals after losing their respective semi-finals.
Lovlina became the third Indian boxer to reach a gold medal bout at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, after Ankush Panghal in the men’s 80kg category and Parveen Hooda in the women’s 65kg category.
HOW WAS LOVLINA’S MATCH
The semi-final did not start as Lovlina would have liked. Both boxers were cautious in the opening round, refusing too early and keeping the exchanges under control. Since none of the fighters managed to create a clear advantage, the judges only stayed with a close fight.
The verdict was against Lovlina.
She lost the first round 2-3 on splits, leaving little room for error in the next two rounds.
However, the Indian responded immediately.
Lovlina upped the intensity in the second round and began to find more success with her combinations. She was more assertive in attack while remaining composed defensively and the referees rewarded the change in approach.
The competition was even and headed for the final round.
That left both boxers with everything they could fight for.
The Kazakh corner made a lot of noise and Bogdanov’s supporters cheered every punch their boxer landed. But inside the ring, Lovlina looked more and more comfortable as the match entered the deciding stages.
The Indian boxer remained composed and put more emphasis on her defence, choosing her moments to attack rather than getting drawn into long exchanges. Bogdanova managed to land a strong left hook, but Lovlina answered with her own counter.
The Kazakh boxer threw everything into the final round knowing she needed to impress the judges. However, Lovlina used her experience to withstand late pressure and limit Bogdan’s opportunities to land clean, telling strikes.
It was a nervous finish, but Lovlina did enough.
The Indian claimed a 3-2 splits victory to send her into the final and one win away from an Asian Games gold.
Lovlina did not reach the main prize in the previous year. This time he has another chance to finish the job.
PRIYA WINS BRONZE ON GAMES DEBUT
While Lovlina advanced to the final, 20-year-old Priya Ghanghas’ impressive debut at the Asian Games ended with a bronze medal.
Priya lost 1-4 to China’s Yang Chengyu in the women’s 60kg semi-final after a match against a more experienced Chinese boxer.
The result meant that Priya could not advance to the gold medal, but she leaves the Games with a podium finish on her debut.
Asian Games Live: September 30 Update
The Indian boxing contingent has already secured a medal through super-heavyweight boxer Narender Berwal who won bronze on Tuesday. Kapil Pokhriyal and Priya Ghanghas added two more bronze medals on Wednesday.
Kapil gave everything he had against Uzbekistan’s Turabek Khabibullaev, but the Uzbek boxer managed the fight more effectively and did enough to convince the judges.
Turabek earned a 4-1 split decision victory, ending Kapil’s campaign.
Kapil therefore returned home with a bronze medal, joining Priya and Narender among India’s boxing medalists at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games.
INDIA BETTER HANGZHOU BOX HAUL
The three medals secured on Wednesday took India’s boxing medal haul at the Asian Games to six, bettering the country’s haul from Hangzhou, where Indian boxers won one silver and three bronze medals.
Three Indian boxers also booked their places in the gold medal bouts on the day.
Parveen Hooda has already secured a place in the women’s 65kg final, while Ankush Panghal made it to the men’s 80kg final. Lovlina then completed the Indian trio of finalists with her comeback victory over Bogdanova.
All three will fight for the gold on October 2.
However, for Lovlina, the significance of the final goes beyond adding another medal to her collection.
She had already stood on the Asian Games podium when she won silver in Hangzhou. Now, after surviving a thrilling semi-final to become the first Indian boxer to reach two Asian Games finals, she has another chance to finish on top.
A win on Oct. 2 would give Lovlina her first Asian Games gold and better the silver she won three years ago.
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