Boxer Deepak Kumar on Saturday had to settle for a silver medal as he came up short in the finals of the Strandja Memorial Tournament.
Deepak came up short in the final face-off in a split decision against two-times European Champion and Bulgaria's Del Asenov in the men's flyweight final bout at the 72nd Strandja Memorial Tournament in Sofia, Bulgaria.
Deepak, who has been in terrific form as evidenced by his scintillating 4-1 victory against the reigning Olympic champion and World Champion, Shakhobidin Zoirov from Uzbekistan in the semis on Friday fell short in the final against the determined local boy Del Asenov, who won the bout 3-2.
Deepak started with a cautious approach and was exposed to some solid punches from his opponent in the first round. The boxer from Hisar looked to improve and up his attack and gave his all in the second round with some decisive punches landing on the opponent's face. While Deepak showed controlled aggression, despite that Asenov held his ground.
An assertive and steady Deepak though put his all in the final round but the 2019 European Games silver medallist Del Asenov landed some clear punches in the dying minutes to win the bout 3-2 in a really close encounter.
"It is disappointing that I could not win the gold but these last few days have been nothing short of a dream come true. I was determined to make a mark in this tournament especially when I got an opportunity to play against a Champion opponent like Shakhobidin Zoirov in the semis. I am very happy that I could come out a winner. Though a lot of work still needs to be done and I will be focusing on it along with my coaches as I go return to India," Deepak added.
This silver medal is also the 23-year-old Deepak's maiden medal from this prestigious and Europe's oldest tournament. He lost here in the first round last year.
Naveen Boora (69kg) was the other Indian to win a medal in the tournament as he ended his campaign with a Bronze medal in his first International outing for India.
On Friday, Deepak had produced a scintillating performance to cause a major upset at the 72nd Strandja Memorial Tournament in Sofia, Bulgaria as he defeated the reigning Olympic champion Uzbekistan's Shakhobidin Zoirov in the men's 52kg semi-final bout.
Showing great composure in the ring, the Asian Championship silver medallist Deepak produced one of the best performances of his career to clinch a thumping 4-1 win against the more fancied Zoirov, who had earlier clinched the 2019 World Championship title beating star Indian boxer Amit Panghal.
( With inputs from ANI )
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