Super Boxing League: Delhi beat Haryana in opener

New Delhi, July 7: Delhi Gladiators beat Haryana Warriors with a margin of 12-6 on the opening day of the inaugural Super Boxing League here on Friday.

In the first fight of the night, Delhi Gladiators' Rakesh Lochan beat Haryana Warriors' Naveen Nehra by a Split Decision to get off the mark on the points table.

Both boxers were equally matched until the third round before Lochan dominated Naveen in Round 4 to seal victory.

In the second fight, Haryana Warriors' captain Neeraj Goyat beat Delhi Gladiators' Vanlulpuwia by split decision. 

However, Delhi Gladiators restored their lead as Shivani Dahiya beat Haryana Warriors' Suman Kumari in the Female Flyweight category.

The fourth fight saw Delhi Gladiators' captain Pawan Maan take on Haryana Warriors' Amit Kumar in the Middle Weight category. 

In the first round, both pugilists kept their shape in order not to give in to their opponents' initial attacks. However, Round 2 saw Pawan controlling the fight as he threw some heavy punches on Amit. 

he latter seemed to have lost some confidence in himself as he looked more fatigued of the two boxers after the second round itself. 

Pawan produced some beautiful combinations in Round 3 to take full control of the fight as Amit failed to match his opponent. Amit did try to make a comeback in Round 4 but it was too little, too late for the 25-year old as Pawan extended Delhi Gladiators' lead to 9-3.

It was up to Haryana Warriors' Sukhdeep Singh to pull the match in his team's favor as he took on Delhi Gladiators' Gaganpreet Sharma in the Super Middle Weight category. 

Both boxers started the first round with a display of skills and patience as they maintained great head-movement, aggression and combination. 

Round 2 saw both fighters exchanging punches to maintain their flow but Gaganpreet stood out as he closed the gap well. It was important for Sukhdeep Singh to knock out his opponent in the next two rounds if he was to help his team in closing down the margin. 

However, Sharma held on to maintain his composure and avoid a knock out as Singh struck some nasty blows in Round 4 to win the bout by Split Decision.

In the last fight of the night, Haryana Warriors' Jagdeep Singh had the opportunity to put the teams level on points or even take the win as he took on Delhi Gladiators' Jagroop Singh in the Heavyweight category. 

In what turned out to be the most competitive bout of the evening, both pugilists exchanged punches through their left and right hands in Round 1. However, the energy shown by both the boxers meant that they lost some composure in Round 2 which slowed down the fight. 

The two exchanged more one-twos and jams in the third Round as it made for an interesting finish to the fight. In the final round, both the boxers focused more on guarding themselves against blows, however, Delhi Gladiators' Jagroop Singh had the upper hand which was proved by the referees as he won the bout by Split Decision to give his side the victory 12-6.