In December last year,forced to miss the AIBA World Cup in Moscow due to a back injury,Vijender Singh was disappointed that he had lost an opportunity to better his Beijing Olympics bronze. Late Wednesday night India time,he assured the country of its first-ever world boxing championships medal by entering the semi-final of the tournament in Milan. The 23-year-old beat Sergiy Derevyanchenko of Ukraine 12-4,and will meet Abbos Atoev of Uzbekistan on Friday for a shot at the final. Im not celebrating now, Vijender,who was conferred the Khel Ratna,Indias highest sporting honour last month,told The Indian Express over the phone. Though this win (over Derevyanchenko) has assured me a medal,I am aiming only for the gold. Ab bronze ko gold mein badalna zaroori hai (It is important to convert [the Beijing bronze into gold). Vijender said the first person to congratulate him had been his team mate,the Manipur flyweight M Suranjoy Singh. Suranjoy was the first,and we talked about his gold medal in the Asian Championships. My work here is not done yet. Suranjoy brought India its first Asian boxing gold in 15 years in June this year,but suffered a one-point technical defeat in his opening bout in Milan. Despite the hunger for a gold,Vijender rated Wednesdays quarter-final victory almost at par with his Olympic medal. Beijing gave me recognition,but a lot of people criticised my approach after the Olympics. They said I wasnt interested in boxing any more,but this medal proves that I live only for the game. Decisive charge After a narrow 4-2 win over Canadas Steve Ross in the pre-quarters on Tuesday,Vijender began defensively against Derevyanchenko. The boxers were tied 1-1 after the first round,but as the bout progressed,Vijender opened his guard and cut through the Ukrainians defence to race ahead 6-4. He came out all guns blazing in the final round,picking up six more points without conceding any. Sergiy is an attacking boxer,and I knew that well. I tried to be defensive in the first round and took the advantage in the second. He was relying mostly on my guard,so I changed gears and went for it. Im in good rhythm after the last two days I cant wait for the semis now, Vijender said. A good performance will help Vijender catch the eye of the new World Series of Boxing franchisees who are present in Milan. A gold medal,along with everything else,will boost my chances for getting picked up by a good team, Vijender said. India have never won a medal in the boxing world championships. The last time an Indian reached the quarter-final (besides Dinesh Kumar,who lost to Russian Artur Beterbiev in an 81-kg quarter-final bout in Milan on Wednesday) was AL Lakra in Chicago in 2007. We all were waiting for this. Chicago was a learning experience,but the loss was disappointing. Suranjoy got the Asian title in June,and now this performance by Vijender means better things lie ahead for us, Lakra said.
