Nitu & Saweety shine as India ring in with golds at World Championships

India’s gold medal-winning boxer Nitu Ghanghas in New Delhi on Saturday; (right) India’s Saweety Boora celebrates her win over China’s Wang Lina in New Delhi on Saturday. Pics/PTI

Nitu Ghanghas (48kg) and the seasoned Saweety Boora (81kg) etched their names in history as they were crowned world champions after notching contrasting wins at the marquee tournament here on Saturday.

Commonwealth Games gold medallist Nitu put up a stupendous performance to see off Mongolia's Lutsaikhan Altansetseg 5-0 and claim the title for the minimum weight category in front of a packed crowd, with Beijing Olympics bronze medallist and Nitu's idol Vijender Singh also present.

Saweety made it two out of two for the hosts as she warded off a challenge from two-time medallist China's Wang Lina 4-3.

Also Read: Abhishek Bachchan, Kajol congratulate Nitu Ghanghas for winning gold at Women's World Boxing Championships

Power-packed punches

In the first bout of the day, Nitu started off aggressively and used her combination of punches, landing jabs and hooks effectively.

The 22-year-old Bhiwani boxer was able to take the first round 5-0. She began the second round with a series of straight jabs.

When Altansetseg attacked, the Indian southpaw countered with right hooks. The two boxers played from a close range and indulged in a lot of holding in a fast-paced bout with Nitu being given a penalty deduction for clinching towards the end of the second round.

Despite Altansetseg's strong comeback in the round, Nitu still managed to take it 3-2.

In the final three minutes, Nitu started from a far but soon ditched the strategy and reverted to playing from a close range, as Altansetseg was also given a point deduction for clinching.

In elite company

The two join an elite list which includes six-time champion Mary Kom (2002, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2010 and 2018), Sarita Devi (2006), Jenny RL (2006), Lekha KC (2006) and Nikhat Zareen (2022).

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