EVERY COMPETITION HAS MADE ME A BETTER BOXER: OLYMPIC DEBUTANT NIKHAT ZAREEN
NEW DELHI: At a time when Indian boxing is struggling to put together its best contingent for the Paris Olympics, two-time world champion Nikhat Zareen has emerged as the country’s best bet for a medal — in the women’s 50kg class — at the upcoming Summer Games.
Nikhat, who will be making her Olympic debut in Paris, will be leading the nation’s charge alongside Tokyo Games bronze medallist Lovlina Borgohain (75kg) and two other first timers — Preeti Pawar (54kg) and Parveen Hooda (57kg). So far, no Indian male boxer has qualified for Paris. The World Olympic qualifying tournament from May 25 to June 2 in Thailand will provide the last chance to pugilists to book their berth for the Olympics.
With the onus largely on Nikhat and Lovlina to deliver the goods, the 27-year-old Telangana boxer is ready to leave her mark on the world’s biggest sporting stage with a changed technique and a much calmer head. The Hangzhou Asian Games bronze medallist reckons that every tournament and bout she has competed in has made her a better boxer and brought a certain level of maturity in her game.
“Every bout teaches me a lot and I try not to repeat the same mistakes. With every competition, I have become a better boxer. Also, a lot calmer inside the ring as well. I have worked on my aggression and how to channelise it according to the game situation. When you waste your energy inside the ring with unnecessary aggression, you get tired a lot faster. So, I display it when it’s required but my focus is on staying calm and composed. That’s what I have understood after the Asian Games,” Nikhat told TOI.
The former junior world champion also talked about making amendments to her technique. She said she will look to play from a close distance rather than just counterattacking her opponent in Paris. “I am playing from a close distance these days. I have been a counterattacking boxer but this time I have worked on how to play a close boxing game (narrowing the distance between a boxer and his/her opponent). Also, I will look to win my bouts through unanimous voting and not wait for split decisions. That situation can be really tricky. Like at the Asian Games, I was playing good but due to a little mistake in the semis, I lost due to a split verdict. I don’t want to be in such a situation again,” she added.
Nikhat informed that she will next compete at the Elorda Cup in Kazakhstan from May 12 to 19 and then move on to Germany for the Olympic training camp after a brief stay in India. “We went to Türkiye for a preparatory camp where we sparred with local pugilists and boxers from Italy. It was a good experience. Elorda Cup will be our last competition before heading to Paris. So, after competing there, we will come back to India and then leave for Germany for the Olympic camp.”
Nikhat rued the fact that no Indian male boxer has so far qualified for the Paris Games and hoped that some of them would be able to win quota places in Thailand. “Being a boxer, I feel sad to see this situation. There’s another qualifier coming for which the team will be leaving on Friday. So, it’s not the end of the road for our male boxers. Hopefully some of them will qualify,” she said.