Boxam boxing: Pooja beats world champ, 9 Indians in finals

Castellon (Spain): Asian Championship gold medallist Pooja Rani (75 kg) defeated world champion Atheyna Bylon of Panama in a semi-final bout as nine Indian boxers stormed into the finals of the 35th Boxam International boxing tournament here.

Pooja dominated her opponent from the beginning and looked unfazed throughout and assured a unanimous win on Friday. She will now square off against Melissa Graham of USA in the final on Sunday night.

Other women boxers joining Pooja in the final are debutant Jasmine (57 kg) and Simranjit (60 kg).

Young Jasmine, who is playing her first senior international tournament showed great composure and played from distance to ensure a comfortable 4-1 win over Italy's Sirine Charaabi. She will be up against European champion Irma Testa in the gold medal bout.

World Championship bronze medallist Simranjit was up against veteran Puerto Rican Kiria Tapia and in a close encounter which saw both the boxers trade a series of punches throughout but some intelligent ring craft by the Indian ensured a close 3-2 win over her senior opponent.

Simran will take on World Championship bronze medallist Rashida Ellis in the final bout on Sunday night.

However, it was a flawless day for the Indian male boxers as all six of them marched into the finals.

CWG bronze medallist Mohammed Hussamuddin (57 kg) continued his fine run and displayed technical superiority over Panama's Orlando Martinez to win 4-1. He will face Puerto Rico's Paul Rivera in the final.