Lovlina Borgohain becomes first Indian woman to reach two Asian Games boxing finals
Lovlina Borgohain became the first Indian woman to reach two Asian Games boxing finals after edging Kazakhstan's Natalya Bogdanova 3-2 in the women's 75kg semi-final on Wednesday at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games. The split decision victory sent Lovlina into the gold-medal bout, leaving her one win away from an Asian Games title.
Lovlina entered the semi-final as the silver medallist from Hangzhou 2022 and faced Bogdanova, the reigning 70kg world champion, in a closely fought contest. Her win in Aichi-Nagoya gives her another chance to improve on the silver she earned three years ago. September 30 proved a productive day for India's boxing contingent, with multiple medals decided.
The semi-final began cautiously, with both fighters keeping exchanges controlled and failing to establish a clear advantage. The judges awarded the first round 3-2 to Bogdanova, leaving Lovlina needing to alter her approach. Lovlina responded by increasing intensity in the second round and finding greater success with combinations, prompting the judges to level the contest heading into the final round.
In the decisive round, the Kazakh corner was vocal as Bogdanova pressed for a telling blow, including a strong left hook that Lovlina answered with a counter. Lovlina emphasised defence, picked her moments to attack and limited Bogdanova's opportunities to land clean, telling blows. The bout finished nervy, but the judges returned a 3-2 split-decision in Lovlina's favour.
India's day also produced three bronze medals. Twenty-year-old Priya Ghanghas took bronze after a 1-4 semi-final defeat to China's Yang Chengyu in the women's 60kg category. Kapil Pokhriyal secured bronze after falling to Uzbekistan's Turabek Khabibullaev, who was awarded a 4-1 split-decision, while super-heavyweight Narender Berwal had already claimed bronze on Tuesday.
The three medals won on Wednesday brought India's boxing haul at the Asian Games to six, an improvement on the Hangzhou total of one silver and three bronze. Three Indian boxers—Parveen Hooda in the women's 65kg, Ankush Panghal in the men's 80kg and Lovlina in the women's 75kg—have now booked places in gold-medal bouts, and all three will fight for gold on October 2.
Lovlina's victory not only extended her run at consecutive Asian Games finals but sets up a clear next step: a gold-medal contest on October 2. A win in that bout would deliver her first Asian Games gold and improve on the silver she won three years ago.