Harpal Singh Bedi / New Delhi
Deepak Kumar (52kg) failed to clear the last hurdle as he lost the final face-off in a split decision against two times European Champion and Bulgaria’s Daniel Asenov 3-2 and had to be content with a silver medal at the 72nd Strandja Memorial Tournament in Sofia, Bulgaria on Saturday.
India finished their campaign in the tournament with two medals, other medal winner was Naveen Boora (69kg) who bagged a a Bronze medal in his first International outing for India.
Deepak, who had chalked out a 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 Daniel Asenov, who won the bout 3-2.
The Indian opened 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 Deepak though put his all in the final round but the 2019 European Games silver medallist Daniel 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.” Deepak said after the bout..
‘ 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,” he 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.