Bartwal storms into quarters at Thailand Open boxing
BANGKOK, May 25: Indian boxer Pawan Bartwal stormed into the quarterfinals of the men’s 55kg category at the 4th Thailand Open International Boxing Tournament with a commanding 5-0 win over Cambodia’s Sao Rangsey here on Sunday.Bartwal, a National Championship silver medallist, dominated the bout with superior ring craft and tactical maturity, securing his second consecutive win in the tournament.Hailing from Syupuri village in Uttarakhand, Pawan started cautiously, dodging early swings and waiting for his moment before landing a sharp punch to the face of his rival that set the tone.The 26-year-old repeatedly pinned his opponent in the corners, and a brilliant bob-and-weave move midway through the second round opened the door for another clean strike.With tight defence and calculated aggression, he kept Rangsey on the back foot and sealed a unanimous decision-his second consecutive win of the tournament.India has fielded a 19-member squad in the prestigious tournament, organised under the aegis of the World Boxing-backed Asian body, and featuring top boxers from China, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, South Korea and hosts Thailand.Bartwal, who has been boxing since 2010, heads into the last-eight stage with strong momentum and his eyes firmly set on a podium finish. (PTI)
Indian junior women’s hockey team beats Chile 2-1
ROSARIO, (Argentina) May 25: The Indian junior women’s hockey team came back from one-goal down to beat Chile 2-1 and begin its campaign in the Four Nation Tournament on a positive note here.Sukhveer Kaur (39th minute) and Kanika Siwach (58th) netted the goals for India while Javeria Saenz (20th) scored the only goal for Chile.Javeria broke the deadlock in the 20th minute to give Chile the lead heading into the second half.India, however, equalised in the third quarter, courtesy of Sukhveer in the 39th minute. Kanika then scored the winning goal in the 58th minute to ensure India’s victory.India will next play against Uruguay on Sunday (Monday IST). (PTI)
Aditi Ashok plays another even par round in Mexico
DEL CARMEN, (Mexico) May 25: Indian golfer Aditi Ashok played her third consecutive even par round of 72 to lie tied 31st at the Mexico Riviera Maya Open here.The third round was a roller coaster as Aditi began her day on the front nine picking up birdies on the third and fifth holes before she dropped the shots with bogeys on the eighth and ninth.On the back nine, the Indian picked up a shot on the 11th hole only to drop it on the 12th, something she repeated on the 15th and 16th holes as she made birdie on the 15th and followed it with a bogey on the 16th.Aditi is still chasing her first top 30 finish of the season, with her best finish being a tied 31st at the Black Desert Championship.Second day leader Jenny Bae continues to hold onto the lead by one shot after the third round.Yahui Zhang of China and Chisato Iwai of Japan finished the round with birdies on the 17th and 18th holes to place themselves in tied second and one shot behind the leader at six under par.Chisato played a perfect round of four under par for the day. (PTI)