India's Boxers Pack A Punch, Clinch Three Medals at IBA Men's World Boxing Championships

India finished the IBA Men's World Boxing Championship 2023 with a remarkable achievement of three bronze medals, as Deepak Kumar, Mohammed Hussamuddin, and Nishant Dev made their mark on the prestigious tournament held in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. India tied for fourth place on the medals tally, alongside hosts Uzbekistan, with six-time world champions Cuba and Russia, and five-time champions Kazakhstan taking the top three spots.

Deepak Kumar, a two-time Asian silver medallist in the 51kg category, displayed unwavering grit in his closely contested semi-final bout against two-time World bronze medallist Billal Bennama of France. Deepak initially conceded the first round by a narrow margin of 2:3 but fought back to win the second round with the same scoreline, showcasing immense resilience and skill. However, in a nail-biting finish, the French boxer narrowly edged over Deepak to secure a 4-3 victory on points.

Similarly, Nishant Dev, in the 71kg category, showed dynamic and aggressive fighting in his closely contested bout against the reigning Asian champion Aslanbek Shymbergenov of Kazakhstan. Despite his best efforts, Nishant lost 2-5 after his bout was reviewed, securing a bronze medal for India.

Two-time Commonwealth Games bronze medallist Hussamuddin had to settle for bronze in his debut World Championships campaign due to a knee injury sustained during the quarter-finals. As a result, he had to give a walkover in his semi-final bout.

Deepak, Hussamuddin, and Nishant have made history by becoming three of the ten World Championships medallists from India. This is the first time that India has clinched three medals at a single edition of the tournament. The tournament featured the participation of 538 boxers from 107 countries, including several Olympic medallists.

The bronze medallists will be awarded USD 50,000 each, and their performances have put them on the map as rising stars in Indian boxing. Their remarkable campaigns in the IBA Men's World Boxing Championship 2023 have made the nation proud and brought a new wave of excitement and enthusiasm for the future of Indian boxing.