KUALA LUMPUR, SEPT 18: Jitender Kumar gate-crashed into the final of the 75-kg category with a 21-10 result against Canadian Trevor Stewardson. In the final, he will meet England's John Pearce, who himself had an upset result against Northern Ireland's Brian Magee, reckoned to be one of the top contenders in the category.Jitender has probably been the only Indian boxer to maintain a tight defence and hold onto the points lead he secures. In computerised scoring, style and technique take a back seat and the only thing that matters are quick scoring blows followed by close defence. While some other Indians like Dingko Singh and Gurcharan Singh allowed their rivals too many liberties and chances to score, Jitender handled the fight better.Both Stewardson and Jitender were extremely tired by the fifth round, but the Indian managed to hold onto his lead and in fact increased his lead as the fight progressed.Magee, who stopped defending champion Rowan Donaldson in an upset yesterday looked jaded againstPearce, who had the advantage of coming into the bout with a day's rest. He got a walkover in the previous round, as his rival Danny Green was ruled out because of a broken hand. In comparison, Magee, considered one the best middleweights in Europe, had a tough fight against Donaldson. Pearce had a 29-19 verdict against Magee in a fight which many felt should ideally have been the final.The draws here in Kuala Lumpur have given many lower rated boxers byes and an advantage of having to fight one bout less in these humid and tough conditions.
