OPM Punjab Sultans produced a terrific performance as they thrashed UP Terminators with a margin of 15-6 to start their campaign on a promising note at the Super Boxing League here last evening.
Amandeep Singh, Saroj Bugalia, Vicky Singh and Sumit Rangi were all winners in their respective categories for the OPM Punjab Sultans. Afghani boxer, Md. Mustafa and Indian Deepak Kumar were the only two winners on the night for the UP Terminators.
In the first fight of the day, OPM Punjab Sultans' Amandeep Singh beat UP Terminators' Nick Zodinsanga in the Feather Weight category by three points as the contest was decided by unanimous decision.
Amandeep started strong in the first fight of the night as he dominated Round 1. The 31-year-old took the fight to the youngster from Mizoram, Nick Zodinsanga, as he threw some impressive punches on the UP Terminators' man. The third Round saw a similar story as Nick failed to make a mark on his opponent. Amandeep held on as he used his experience to keep out Nick's attacks in Round 4 to clinch the victory and give his side the early lead.
UP Terminators' Md. Mustafa was given the responsibility to cut short the lead in the second fight of the night as he took on OPM Punjab Sultans' Balkar Singh in the Welter Weight category.
The Afghani boxer did not disappoint his team in the first Round as he smacked a couple of clean one-twos on Singh. The Terminators' boxer continued his form in Round 2 as he became the clear favourite. However, in Round 3, it was Sultans' Balkar Singh who made a comeback into the fight as he started a hefty exchange of punches which got the crowd going. Round 4 was crucial for both the boxers in order to attain supremacy and snatch the win for their team. It was Md. Mustafa who came out on top as he won the bout through Unanimous Decision to put the teams level on points at 3-3.
The third fight saw Super Boxing League's women in action as UP Terminators' Sulav Magar took on OPM Punjab Sultans' Saroj Bugalia in the Female Fly category.
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It was a crucial tie in the match as a win for either boxer would put their team into the lead with three more fights to go. Sulav started Round 1 very strongly as she barged her opponent with some nasty blows. However, as the fight progressed, Saroj pulled up her socks to hit some good blows to her opponent in the next three Rounds. It meant that Saroj was awarded the win by unanimous decision to put her team OPM Punjab Sultans in the lead with a score line of 6-3.
The fourth fight saw UP Terminators' Deepak Kumar take on OPM Punjab Sultans' Sagar Narwat in the Middle Weight category.
In the first round, both pugilists kept their shape in order to not give-in to their opponents' initial attacks but Sultans' Sagar Narwat was able to control the fight by the scruff of its neck as he threw some heavy hands on Deepak Kumar. The latter seemed to have lost some confidence in himself as he looked more fatigued of the two boxers after the second round itself. However, Deepak started Round 3 with fresh energy as he struck some barging blows which affected Sagar. The Terminators' boxer produced some beautiful combinations in Round 4 to make it a well balanced fight which eventually ended in Deepak winning the bout by Split Decision to put the teams level on points at 6-6 after four bouts.
The fifth fight of the night was between UP Terminators' Amitesh Chaubey and OPM Punjab Sultans' Vicky Singh in the Super Middle Weight category. It was an important bout for both the teams as a win for either boxer would put them in a commanding position.
Terminators' Chaubey took the initiative early on as he produced some marvellous combinations to put pressure on Singh in Round 1 and 2. However, Singh chose to hold on to his composure in the next two Rounds. The experienced boxer kept his guard up when it mattered, and took every opportunity to strike punches on Chaubey. Thus, the final result was in favour of OPM Punjab Sultans' Vicky Singh as he won by Unanimous Decision to put his team in front with a tally of 9 points to Terminators' 6 points.
The last fight of the night was eventually the decider as a win for OPM Punjab Sultans would see them win the match and a win for UP Terminators would put the scores level. In the Heavy Weight category, OPM Punjab Sultans were represented by Sumit Rangi while it was up to UP Teminators' skipper Sandeep Dahiya to bring the match in his side's favour. The former started the bout very aggressively through quick and perfect combinations. Dahiya sustained the first Round but he could not manage to last even two Rounds as he was Knocked Out by a superb one-two punch from Sumit Rangi.
The referee stopped the match after 2 minutes and 20 seconds of Round 2 as OPM Punjab Sultans' Sumit Rangi was awarded the victory by a Technical Knock Out. The win for Rangi meant that the OPM Punjab Sultans registered their first victory of Super Boxing League by a score line of 15-6.
North East Tigers will take on Bahubali Boxers in their opening match of the league later today here at the Siri Fort Squash and Badminton Stadium.