Deepak Bhoria takes home bronze at the boxing world championship

Indian boxers Deepak Bhoria (51 kg) and Mohammad Hussamudin (57kg) have made India proud as they won bronze medals at the World Championships in Tashkent. Two-time World Championships bronze medallist France's Bilal Bennama gave Deepak tough competition as a 3-4 split verdict went into bout review.

Starting on positive momentum, Deepak defeated Nurzhigit Diushebaev of Kyrgyzstan by a 5-0 as he maintained his streak in the flyweight category to be featured at the Paris Olympics. Deepak held such clout in the boxing ring that the referee was compelled to give Diushebaev two standing counts as the bout reached the final rounds.

Deepak is a talented boxer as he always strategically makes his moves.  He knows when and how to give accurate punches to the opponent. Diushebaev began the second round aggressively but Deepak played well with smart counterattacks. At 0-5, Deepak played defensively in the last three minutes and gave his punch moves at any opportunity.

On the other hand, the 29-year-old Hussamudin suffered a knee injury and withdrew from the tournament as he was about to play the semi-final bout. During the quarter-final against J. Diaz Ibanez of Bulgaria, Hussamudin hurt his knee and did not want to aggravate it. Hence, he backed out of the tournament and will recuperate. Hussamudin was scheduled to face Cuba's Saidel Horta in his debut World Championships.

Boxing Federation of India (BFI) said in a press statement, “Hussamuddin gives a walkover due to injury and settles for bronze. He had a knee injury in the last bout after which he had pain and swelling. After careful and detailed assessment by the medical team, it has been decided that he won't take part in the semi-final bout as he doesn't want the injury to aggravate but rather recover for future competitions."

India has won a total of seven medals, including a silver, in the previous editions.