World Boxing: Nikhat, Parveen and Anamika storm into quarters

Asian Championships bronze medallist Nikhat Zareen (52kg) continued her splendid run as she stormed into the quarterfinals alongside Anamika (50kg) and Parveen (63kg) in the World Boxing Championships in Istanbul on Sunday.

Nikhat made light work of Mongolia's Lutsaikhan Altantsetseg to win by a 5-0 unanimous verdict.

Parveen then displayed her attacking prowess to out-punch former Youth Olympic champion Jajaira Gonzalez of USA 5-0, while Anamika dispatched world championships bronze medallist Kristy Lee Harris of Australia with a similar margin.

But, it was curtains for Shiksha (54kg), who went down by a 2-3 split decision to Youth Asian bronze medallist Yesugen Oyuntsetseg of Mongolia.

Nikhat was the first Indian in action on Sunday and she completely dominated from start to finish in her round of 16 bout.

The Telangana boxer used her quick hands to great effect and landed a flurry of straight punches on her rival's face in all the three rounds.

The highlight of Nikhat's display was her immaculate footwork and speed, which the Mongolian found difficult to handle.

Nikhat will next face England's Charley Davison, who defeated Hainite Kayla of Togo in the round of 16.

A slow and defensive start cost Shiksha dearly in her 54kg bout as she took time to get into the groove in the first round, which the Mongolian won.

But the Indian came back strongly in the second round and adopted a more aggressive approach which paid rich dividends for her as she won the round.

However, she couldn't hold on to her tempo in the final round as Oyuntsetseg waited for openings to land her punches and succeed in her ploy to pocket the close contest.

Apart from Nikhat and Anamika and Parveen, Nitu (48kg), Manisha (57kg) and Pooja Rani (75kg) have also qualified for the quarterfinals.

Later in the day, 2017 Youth World Champion Ankushita (66kg) will begin her campaign against Poland's Aneta Rygielska and Jaismine (60kg) will take on Australia's Angela Harries.