World Championship in Milan: Vijender and Co are Ready for Fight

Posted by Prem at 12:21 AM

With the World Championship in Milan, Italy set to begin on Tuesday, Indian boxing is hoping to take yet another giant step. A solid performance there will reaffirm the belief that the sport has truly found its feet in India. More importantly, the boxers will also be keen to prove that they deserve to share the spoils of World Series Boxing.

Of course, the main protagonist for India, undoubtedly, will be Olympic bronze medallist and World No.2 Vijender Singh. "I am fully prepared and confident this time," Vijender had said while recounting his exit in the second round of the last edition in Chicago.

The recently-crowned Khel Ratna will not be the lone hope, as flyweight T Nanao Singh (World No.5) and heavyweight Dinesh Kumar (World No.6) will also be trying to rise up the ladder. Expectations will also be high from seasoned pro Akhil Kumar (57kg) and Jitender Kumar (54kg) who have been, literally, counting days for this coveted event after their inspired show in the quarterfinals of the Beijing Olympics.

And then there is Suranjoy Singh (51 kg) who ended India’s 15-year drought in the Asian Championship in Zuhai with a gold.

"India’s best bet will Nanao and Suranjoy while Jai Bhagwan (60 kg) and Manoj Kumar (64 kg) will be the surprise package of our team," Akhil told TOI from Milan, adding that he himself will be "starting from zero" this season.

Ultimately, it will boil down to will power as odds will be stacked heavily against them this time with as many as 700 pugilists vying for glory. The unpredictability factor will be very high as there will be 6-7 bouts to ensure a medal for a boxer.

"Boys need to deliver power punches each time," chief coach Gurbax Singh Sandhu had said before leaving for the championship. The coach is right, as you can’t rest on your laurels. The nine-member team will need to keep in mind that India has never won a medal in the elite championship. But then, the fans will also not forget that the spirits have never soared so high in Indian boxing before.

Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com

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