Astana [Kazakhstan], July 3 : Hitesh Gulia and Sakshi secured semi-final spots and guaranteed themselves podium finishes on Thursday, adding to India's burgeoning medal count at the World Boxing Cup Kazakhstan 2025.
Hitesh, a gold medalist from the Brazil leg earlier this year, delivered a dominant 5:0 win over Kazakhstan's Almaz Orozbekov in the men's 70kg quarterfinal, ensuring another medal to his name. In the women's 54kg category, Sakshi put on a composed display to beat Brazil's Tatiana Regina de Jesus Chagas via unanimous decision.
They now join guaranteed medalists Minakshi (48kg) and Pooja Rani (80kg), as well as Sanju (60kg), who confirmed a podium for herself on Wednesday after advancing to the semifinals. Anamika (51kg) also remains in contention after reaching the quarters. With several medals guaranteed and more boxers still in the mix, Team India's campaign in Astana continues to be one to remember.
Earlier in the tournament, in the women's 54kg category, Sakshi put on a composed display to defeat England's Charley Davison with a unanimous 5:0 decision in her pre-quarterfinal bout. Jaismine followed with a confident showing of her own in the women's 57kg division, overcoming Azerbaijan's Aynur Mikayilova by the same margin to seal her place in the last eight.
Minakshi sealed her place in the semi-finals with a dominant 5:0 win over Chinese Taipei's Guo Yi-Xuan, showing sharp movement and clean scoring throughout. Pooja Rani followed with a gritty 4:1 split decision victory over Kazakhstan's Gulsaya Yerzhan in the 80kg division, securing her berth in the final four and guaranteeing a podium finish.
During the April leg in Brazil, the Indian contingent delivered an impressive performance in their first-ever outing at the Elite level international meet organised by World Boxing, bagging six medals, including a gold and a silver, at Foz Do Iguacu.Four Indian players bagged bronze medals, including Jadumani Singh Mandengbam (50kg), Manish Rathore (55kg), Sachin (60kg) and Vishal (90kg).
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