Nightmare start for boxers in Tashkent

Four of seven Pakistani pugilists fall at first hurdle

KARACHI: Pakistani contingent at the 2017 Asian Boxing Championship in Tashkent, Uzbekistan has endured a nightmare start as four of its seven pugilists have crashed out in the opening round of the competition.

A lot was expected from the national septet, composed of Mohibullah (49kg), Syed M Asif (52kg), Suleman Baloch (64kg), Gul Zaib (69kg), Tanveer Ahmed (75kg), Awais Ali Khan (81kg) and Sanaullah (91kg).

However, Asif was ousted 5-0 by Uzbek boxer Jasur latipov, Mohib suffered same fate at the hands of China’s Junjun He, Ahmed fared marginally better, losing 4-1 to Brama Handra, just as Baloch did to Taipei’s Hung Ming.

So far, the only boxers to reach the quarter-finals remain Sanaullah and Awais, who did so by defeating Sri Lanka’s P Namal and a Chinese opponent respectively, whereas Gulzaib overcame Palestine's Ahmed Harara in the second round.

In the wake of the group's sub-par overall showings, Arshad Hussain — another Pakistani boxer who is currently training for the upcoming Islamic Solidarity Games — feels the country's game is regressing whereas their Asian rivals have progressed.

“It’s not ideal but as fighters I can tell you that we always try to give our all,” Hussain told The Express Tribune. “It's just that boxers from other countries get trained abroad, whereas we do two or three months of camp locally.

"Boxing is changing quickly; even India is doing well because now their focus is to produce world champions. We, on the other hand, have to make do with bare-minimum and are always scrambling for necessities such as sparring partners and facilities.

"For instance, I’m the national champion in my weight category, but I have to train with a silver medallist [someone below my level]. The results [in Tashkent] show how much we need to improve. The government really needs to put some resources aside for us.”

Hussain admitted that participating at the Games in Baku, Azerbaijan will be a challenge for him, which leaves him hoping for good draws.

"Last year, I got eliminated in the first round at the South Asian Games, so I hope to put up a better fight at Islamic Games," said Hussain. "But for that, I'll also need good draws. Ali, Sanaullah and Gulzaib were lucky as they had better draws so they managed to survive till the next round in the Asian Championship.