Pakistan’s hopes of bagging medals at the China Open of Boxing received a major jolt after the country’s leading hope Nisar Khan crashed out courtesy a quarter-final loss at the hands of a local boxer.
Nisar, who started his quest well with an emphatic win over a Korean opponent, struggled against Liu Bing in the middleweight (75kg) category. A shaky start in the must-win battle forced Nisar to concede early points with Bing, enjoying the crowd’s backing, dominating early on.
Weak in defence, Nisar missed several point-scoring chances and trailed 7-1 after the opening round. The former Saff Games gold medalist, however, attempted a comeback and earned two points in the next round.
Nisar, who won a bronze medal in the championship last year, came up with a good show and even though he dominated the decisive round, he was unable to grab enough points and lost 13-6 to seal his exit from the event.
“After a poor start I recovered well,” Nisar told The Express Tribune. “Although I’m satisfied with my performance, unfair decisions led to my defeat. My opponent was hardly on target and I was surprised to see the score at the end of the bout.”
With Nisar and Sardar Mohammad bowing out early, Pakistan’s medal hopes now rest on Commonwealth Games bronze-medallist Mohammad Waseem and Amir Khan who will launch their campaign today. Waseem, who will meet Ray Saludar of Phillipines is not willing to return empty-handed.
“I will give it my best,” he said. “I feel that I have added responsibility after Nisar’s loss and hopefully I can win a medal.”
Published in The Express Tribune, June 1st, 2011.
COMMENTS
Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.
For more information, please see our Comments FAQ