Hisar, Dec 31: World championships bronze medallist Manish Kaushik and Railways’s duo of Rohit Tokas and Sachin put up sensational displays to start their campaign on a winning note in the National Boxing Championships here on Saturday.
Kaushik (63.5kg) was up against Prabhat Diwedi of Madhya Pradesh and living up to his name, he made lightwork of his opponent.
He was on the frontfoot from the get go and after dominating the first two rounds, the bout came to an end after the referee stopped contest (RSC) towards the end of the third round.
Kaushik will take on Sandeep Doni of Andhra Pradesh in the round-of-16 bout on Tuesday.
Birmingham Commonwealth Games bronze medallist Tokas (67kg) faced Rahul of Uttarakhand in his tournament opener.
Being at his attacking best, Tokas, representing Railways Sports Promotion Board (RSPB), overpowered his opponent by utilising his quick movement to dodge attacks and his strength to land accurate punches.
He won the bout 5:0 by unanimous decision and will be in round-of-16 action on Monday.
Similar to Tokas, Sachin (57kg) produced a stunning performance to prevail 5:0 against Raman Sharma of Dadra and Nagar Haveli Daman and Diu.
The 2016 youth world champion was at the top of his game and hardly gave his opponent a chance to make a comeback throughout the bout.
He will take on Neeraj of Haryana in the round of 32 on Monday.
Reigning Asian Championships bronze medallist Govind (48kg) received a walkover against Jenish Patel of Gujarat.
The Thailand Open champion will face Mansingh of Jammu and Kashmir in his round of 16 on Tuesday.
Priyandhu Dabas (54kg) of Haryana registered a commanding victory against Prakash Singh of Chhattisgarh with the bout ending after the referee stopped contest in the first round.
The record six-time Asian medallist Shiva Thapa who is representing Assam will begin his campaign from the round of 16 stage after getting a bye in the first round. He will face Jaswinder Singh of Delhi on Monday.
Similar to Thapa, the Service Sports Control Board (SSCB) duo of Sanjeet and Narender will be kicking off their campaign from the round-of-16 stage after receiving a bye in the first round.
A total of 386 boxers across 13 different weight categories are participating in the national championships. (PTI)
