- By Himanshu Badola
- Sun, 01 Oct 2023 07:04 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
India's star boxer Nikhat Zareen finished her campaign in the women’s 50kg event as she bagged a bronze medal at the Asian Games 2023 in Hangzhou, China on Sunday.
Nikhat Zareen lost her semi-final bout against Thailand’s Chuthamat Raksat by a 3:2 split decision. Zareen and Raksat faced each other in the quarter-finals of the world championships earlier this year and the Indian boxer had come out on top then.
Talking about the match, both Nikhat and Raksat started the bout cautiously, the two only able to land soft punches with measured jabs.
ALSO READ: Tajinder Pal Singh Toor Bags Gold Medal In Men's Shot Put With Best Throw Of 20.36m
In the final round, the Thai boxer managed some decisive hooks to take control and won the bout in the close contest by the barest of margins.
“My experience was great. I had very good bouts in these Asian Games,” Nikhat said. “Today, unfortunately, I couldn’t win the semi-final match against Thailand. But it’s fine, I will take this as a learning lesson.
“I’ll definitely come back stronger. I’ll learn from my mistakes from this competition, and I definitely look forward to that.”
Earlier in the day, Parveen Hooda made it to the women’s 57kg semi-finals by defeating Sitora Turdibekova of Uzbekistan by unanimous decision. She secured a medal at this year's continental meet and also won the quota for the Paris 2024 Olympics next year.
Parveen Hooda will face Chinese Taipei’s Lin Yu Ting in the semi-finals on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, Jasmine Lamboria missed out on a medal after she lost by RSC (referee stops count) in the women’s 60kg quarters against Ungyong Won of the Republic of Korea.
Four other Indian boxers, including two-time world champion Nikhat Zareen (50kg), Preeti Pawar (54kg), Lovlina Borgohain (75kg), and Narender Berwal (+92kg), have previously confirmed Olympic quotas.
ALSO READ: Indian Players Who Will Make Their One-Day World Cup Debut In 2023
As per the the regulations of the tournament, semifinalists in the women's 50kg, 54kg, 57kg, and 60kg events, and finalists in the 66kg and 75kg categories will automatically receive qualification for the Paris Olympics.