Glasgow: Indian boxers secure nine commonwealth games medals, five advance on flawless day
Indian boxers delivered a strong performance at the Commonwealth Games 2026 in Glasgow, with five athletes securing victories on Wednesday to advance to the semifinals. This flawless day in the ring ensured that India’s total number of boxing semifinalists reached nine, guaranteeing at least nine bronze medals for the nation.
The achievement marks a significant improvement over India’s boxing medal tally at the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games, where the country secured seven medals, comprising three gold, one silver, and three bronze.
Five boxers advance to semifinals
The winning streak on Wednesday began with Sakshi Choudhary in the women’s 51kg quarterfinal. She demonstrated a dominant performance against Caitlin Fryers of Northern Ireland, controlling the bout from the outset. Choudhary utilised her reach advantage and sharp combinations to maintain distance, ultimately securing a unanimous 5-0 victory. She noted that her strategy was to box from long range, which she considered her strength, countering Fryers’ close-range approach.
Following Choudhary’s success, Arundhati Choudhary faced Morgan Henderson from New Zealand in the women’s 70kg quarterfinal. After a closely contested match, Arundhati maintained her composure to achieve a 3-1 victory, earning her spot in the semifinals.
The men’s boxing events also saw strong performances. Former world youth champion Sachin Siwach continued India’s momentum in the men’s 60kg quarterfinal. He overpowered Treasure Moremi of Botswana with a composed display, winning the bout 5-0 by unanimous decision. All five judges scored in favour of Siwach, who is ranked world No. 5.
In the men’s 80kg quarterfinal, Ankush Yadav, a silver medallist from last year’s World Boxing Cup Finals, extended India’s winning streak. He delivered a commanding performance against Jade Micock of Seychelles, securing a 5-0 victory. Yadav’s speed, movement, and superior combinations were key to his control throughout the contest.
The final Indian boxer to complete the five-in-five sweep on Wednesday was Narender Berwal in the men’s 90+kg quarterfinal. Berwal faced Michael Seko of Samoa in a dramatic bout that included referee interventions and two point deductions against the Indian. Despite these challenges, Berwal showed resilience, forcing standing counts twice, including in the decisive final round, to edge Seko 3-2 on a split decision.
These five boxers — Narender Berwal, Ankush Yadav, Sakshi Choudhary, Arundhati Choudhary, and Sachin Siwach — joined Lovlina Borgohain (75kg), Priya Ghanghas (60kg), Preeti Pawar (54kg), and Jadumani Singh (55kg) in the semifinals.
Other Indian athletes in contention
Beyond boxing, Indian athletes also made progress in other disciplines. Shot putters Tajinderpal Singh Toor and Samardeep Singh Gill qualified for the final round. National record holder Toor breached the automatic qualification mark of 20m in Group A with a throw of 20.14m on his second attempt, after an initial throw of 19.93m.
In qualification round Group B, Gill’s best effort was 19.95m, achieved in his opening attempt. His subsequent throws measured 19.75m and a foul. Gill finished fifth overall among 15 competitors across the two groups, with the top 12 performers or those breaching the 20m mark qualifying for the finals scheduled for Thursday.
On the track, national record holder Animesh Kujur qualified for the 200m semifinals, clocking his season-best time. Kujur ran 20.46 seconds to win Heat 4 in the round one races, finishing seventh overall. The 16 fastest runners from 10 heats advanced to the semifinals, also to be held on Thursday.
However, India did not find success in the lifting arena, as Sanjana bowed out of the women’s 77 kg category with a Do Not Finish (DNF). Similarly, swimmers Sajan Prakash and Aneesh S Gowda did not qualify for the men’s 200m freestyle final. Prakash finished fifth in his heat and 20th overall with a time of 1:51.99 seconds, while Aneesh finished 18th overall with 1:51.64 seconds.
Para swimmers Suyash Narayan Jadhav and Chaitanya Vishwas Kulkarni, however, qualified for the Men’s 50m Freestyle S7 event.
The boxing finals are set to take place on Thursday.
Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com
