24-Carat gold

India attained its 14th gold medal with style. Boxers dont come without the brawn,and Vijender always carried the reputation of being a brainy competitor,not given to bravado in keeping his guard,nor a slave of emotive wild swinging of arms. What was perhaps under-estimated till now,was just how big a big-occasion pugilist he was.

The 25-year-old was stuck with a bronze tag since all his major medals hitherto had been the red-tinged third-placed podium compensations 8211; from the Olympics through to the World Championships a year later and right up to the Commonwealth Games last month 8211; where his luck seemed to have hit the pits as he argued and cribbed out of his bout,and then scowled and stomped off the medal ceremony displaying attitude that reflected grapes which had gone very quickly sour. Moreover,he seemed destined for a medal just a shade better when he cleared his semi-final,and was to run into World Champion Atoev,to whom hed lost in their last meeting at Milan.

Walking in with confidence writ large and betraying no signs of all this unfavourable history,Vijender had made his first statement against the fancied opponent. The idea of course,was to exploit the fact that 75 kg could come in different shapes and sizes. And Vijender on Friday,maximised his advantage in being 6 feet tall.

The big blow

It was one hard mighty punch though,that without yielding any points,set the tone for the rest of the bout. Early in the first round with Vijender leading 1-0,the 25-year-old Indian packed one right that unsettled Atoev,who stumbled on his feet momentarily,almost disorienting his rhythmic footwork and putting some early fear in his mind. Thereafter,Vijender preyed on that fright and put such a high price on keeping his lead that Atoev was left to desperately swerve his arms even as Vijender denied him that opening point. He bulged his own tally meanwhile 8211; 2 in the opener,3 to consolidate in the next,and finally 2 more points to rub in the salt.

This required a sturdy defense,and the Bhiwani Bomber eschewed any thoughts of slackening his guard even as he never allowed the Uzbek any breathing space from his attacks. Big occasions demand big hearts,and Vijender remained mindful of not letting the World Champ stamp his credentials on this particular bout,where the Indians better reach and a tight game-plan also saw the coming together of the left-right combination in the third round as Vijender asserted his confidence.

Even though my opponent was a two-time champion,I didnt feel any pressure. I enjoyed beating the world champion. I felt hungry for the title since Id been told I was only winning bronze, Vijender said later,adding that hed studied his opponents tactics,and adapted to the situation very quickly. My next aim is to win the Olympic gold in 2012, the champion said.

If you had to bank on one Indian boxer who would pay the big occasion its due respect and rise in inches to come up to scratch,it would have to be Vijender Singh. There was a reason why Vijender,amongst all of 2008 Olympics Indian quarterfinalists,stood on that podium in the end. Guangzhou amplified what Beijing had stated in Chinese whispers Vijender was the man with the steely nerves for the big occasion,and his pretty face need not distract from that elementary fact.