Asian Games 2018: Sarjubala only woman boxer in fray as Pavitra, Sonia Lather crash out

Jakarta, August 28: Pavitra's valiant effort fell just short while Sonia Lather couldn't figure things out at all as Indian boxers endured a day without a win at the Asian Games 2018 here.

Sonia, a two-time Asian and world silver-medallist, was up against North Korea's Jo Son Hwa in her featherweight 57kg category quarterfinal bout. The Indian never quite got a measure of her opponent in a contest that could hardly be described as exciting. Jo was the one mounting most of the few attacks and being a southpaw, she became all the more difficult for the Indian to decipher.

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Jo's jabs connected powerfully but the bout itself wasn't particularly impressive, given that both the boxers spent a considerable time clinching and holding. The duo ended up getting a warning each for clinching.

Despite putting up a brave fight,
Pavitra goes down against local Hasanah in the quarters by 3-2 in a closely contested bout.

A good effort from Pavitra but falls short by a trivial margin. 🥊#AsianGames2018 #boxing @BFI_official pic.twitter.com/cNnzudznLU

— FISTO (@FISTOSPORTS) August 28, 2018

About 45 minutes later, Pavitra took the ring against home favourite Huswatun Hasanah in the lightweight 60kg category. The Indian was a comprehensive winner in the first round, unaffected by the partisan crowd's loud support for Hasanah. However, Hasanah put the power in her punches from second round onwards, not missing a chance to connect.

Pavitra, making her debut at the Asian Games, stood her ground but the effort could not find favour with a majority of the judges, who ruled 3-2 in favour of the Indonesian.

The remaining quarterfinals will be held on Wednesday (August 29).

Two-time medallist Vikas Krishan (75kg), Amit Panghal (49kg), and Dheeraj Rangi (64kg) will fight it out for a place in the men's semifinals, while Sarjubala Devi (51kg) is the lone woman left in fray for the country.