IMAGE: India’s Nishant Dev in action with Mexico’s Marco Alonso Verde Alvarez during the Olympics men’s 71kg boxing quarter-final at North Paris Arena, Villepinte, France, on Saturday. Photograph: Peter Cziborra/Reuters
India’s Nishant Dev narrowly missed out on a medal, suffering a narrow defeat to Mexico’s Marco Verde in the quarter-finals of the men’s 71kg boxing event at the Paris Olympics on Saturday.
Verde emerged victorious by a split decision, four of the five boxers ruling in his favour.
Leading after the first round, the 23-year-old Indian, who defeated Alvarez in the 2021 World Championships for the bronze medal, was off to a flyer as Alvarez struggled to match his pace. He used his straight jabs to good effect, landing them square on the Mexican’s face and body to tire out his opponent.
Alvarez was trailing for most part of the round but managed to connect a lethal right hook on Nishant’s face that forced the referee to give the Indian a standing count. It was followed by a left in the dying minutes, but the Indian’s dominant display ensured he had the bragging rights.
IMAGE: Nishant Dev lands one on Marco Alvarez. Photograph: Peter Cziborra/Reuters
Nishant continued to unleash a range of punches, including a combination of hooks, while Alvarez too upped his game, connecting some vital blows. However, Nishant looked the stronger of the two as he picked the Mexican’s shots.
But the judges favoured the Mexican 3-2 as Alvarez and Nishant entered the final three minutes by the narrowest of margins.
Alvarez landed a combination of punches to start the final round on an aggressive note. The Mexican showed more urgency as he landed an uppercut. The Indian, on the other hand, looked completely exhausted and while he tried to throw punches he was slow.
Alvarez acknowledged that the bout was a tough one.
“It was a tough bout, played with heart and mind. I hit on his body to open up for upper cuts. I had lost to him in 2021 World Championships. I have a lot of respect for him,” Alvarez said.
“He is very technically sound boxer. My coaches asked me to play smart after I lost the first round.”
Nishant is the fifth Indian boxer to exit the Games. Tokyo Olympics bronze winner Lovlina Borgohain is the only Indian boxer still in contention.
