Favourites prevail on 1st day of women's boxing worlds

New Delhi : Pre-tournament favourites enjoyed easy outings even as the bout between Staridsman Anja of Australia and Cordero Hernanadez of Columbia in the lightweight category turned out to be the best on the opening day of the AIBA Womens World Boxing Championships here on Thursday.

The Aussie ultimately claimed a split 3:2 verdict after a tough fight.

In the first round, the CWG gold winner from Australia got 10 points each from three judges, while in the second she just about managed to get points from two of the five judges.

However, what made the difference was the third round when she unleashed a combination punches and a couple of straights which helped the 31-year-old progress to the second round as she got full points from four judges.

On the first day of the championships, the preliminary rounds began in three categories -- Flyweight (51), Featherweight (57) and Lightweight (60) -- with the favourites winning their bouts rather easily.

On Friday, several Indians will be in action. Young pugilist Manisha Moun is confident of a positive start when she makes her debut at the ongoing AIBA Women's World Boxing Championships.

The 21-year-old from Haryana is expected to face a tough challenge against the 36-year-old Christina Cruz of the US in the preliminary round of the 54 kilogram class.

But Manisha has clinched upset wins earlier in her brief international career.

The Haryana boxer, who took a silver medal after defeating former European champion Viktoria Kuleshova in the semi-finals of the Silesian Championships in Poland in September, said she was ready for the D-Day.

"The exposure I got in Poland was great. I have prepared well and, with the home crowd support, would hope to do well," Manisha said.

But she did admit that the worlds would be a different kettle of fish and she has gathered information on rival boxers from her teammates, especially from veterans Mary Kom and Sarita Devi, who have given vital tips to handle tough situations during the bout.

But the New York pugilist is a wily boxer and has to her credit several international honours, including being the continental champion, also the twice bronze medal winner at the 2012 and 2016 world championships.

But Manisha, who is tactically good with a solid defence, hopes the tips she got from the seniors will come in handy against the American.

However, Christina will use her experience against the Indian.

Veteran Sarita Devi, a multiple medal winner, who made her World Championships debut in Scranton in 2001, was too happy to be taking to the rings at home after 12 years.

When the Manipuri pugilist competed last time at New Delhi in 2006, she won a gold medal and later followed it up with a bronze in 2008 at Ningbo City in China.

But the 36-year-old Sarita, who takes on Diana Sandra Brugger of Switzerland in lightweight (60 kg) category, was as enthusiastic as she would have been during the first Worlds.

Diana, in her first-round bout, defeated Hasanah Huswatun from Indonesia 5:0, and has been competing in world championships since 2008 but can't match the guile and experience of the Indian.

She was selected into the squad after her performance in the Indian Open and Silesian women's event in Poland.

"I was happy to be back and competing at home after 12 years. I will definitely make the best use of it and win a medal for the country," Sarita said.