BFI Cup opens with thrills

The inaugural BFI Cup witnessed thrilling displays of skill and grit on Monday as India’s boxing stars lit up the ring, with Ankushita Boro and Arundhati Choudhary clinching gold in commanding fashion, while Husamuddin and S Vishwanath stormed into the men’s finals.

Former Youth World Champions Ankushita (Assam) and Arundhati (Services) were the stars of the women’s finals. Ankushita showcased her signature aggression to edge past Rajasthan’s Parthavi Grewal 3-2 in a nail-biting 60–65kg bout. Meanwhile, Arundhati stamped her authority in the 65–70kg category with a dominant 5-0 win over Sneha (AIP), leaving no doubts about her supremacy.

World Championships bronze medallist Parveen Hooda (SAI) also impressed, narrowly defeating Priya (Haryana) 3-2 in the 57–60kg category. Across ten weight divisions in the Elite Women’s competition, the action remained intense, producing several close encounters and dominant performances alike.

Other notable winners included Nivedita Karki (Uttarakhand), who edged World Championships silver medallist Manju Rani (Railways) 3-2 to claim the 45–48kg title, and Bhavna Sharma (Railways), who outclassed Savita (Railways) 5-0 in the 48–51kg final. Maharashtra’s Khushi Jadhav narrowly defeated Divya Pawar (AIP) 3-2 in the 51–54kg category, while Himachal Pradesh’s Vinakshi Dhota blanked Mushkan (AIP) 5-0 in the 54–57kg division. In the heavier classes, Monika (SAI), Babita Bisht (AIP), and Ritika (SAI) claimed gold in 70–75kg, 75–80kg, and 80–80+kg categories respectively.

In men’s action, S Vishwanath (Services) dominated Gopi Mishra (Services) 5-0 to enter the 47–50kg final, while Mohammad Husamuddin (Services), a World Championships bronze medallist, outpunched Mitesh Deswal (Railways) 5-0 in the 55–60kg category. Asian Games gold medallist Amit Panghal (Services) faced a narrow 1-4 semi-final defeat to teammate Ashish (Services), leaving fans eager for the upcoming final bouts.

The inaugural BFI Cup has set the stage for India’s boxing talents to shine, combining close contests, explosive victories, and promising performances ahead of the international season.