One reason,you suspect,why they said the sun never set on the empire is because it really doesnt go down till well after 9 pm,and is up again at 4 am this time of the year. Daylight robberies,then,are very relative in fading twilight. American Errol Spence outpunched Indian Vikas Krishan in the last round of the welterweight bout late on Friday,after trailing narrowly throughout. The ring referee for Krishans opening 69-kg match he had a bye earlier after some initial confusion,watched the light go in the red corner and awarded the fight to the Indian 13-11. With their last boxer just outpointed before making the quarters,the Americans lodged a protest,sensing Spence had thrown enough punches to get the better of the Indian who was visibly tiring in the ultimate round. Following a review,the International Boxing Association (AIBA) overturned the result of the pre-quarterfinal bout,unanimously deciding to award Spence four points,making him a 15-13 winner,after the committee found Krishan guilty of: intentionally spitting out his gumshield,where the referee did not issue a warning due to blocked sight; and committing a total of nine holding fouls in the third round alone,for which he picked only one caution. .at least four points should have been awarded to the boxer from USA. Therefore,the final score should be 13:15 in favour of USA. The protest is accepted and the winner of Bout 142 is Errol Spence (USA), the AIBA statement said. The Indians countered the overturned decision with an appeal after watching videos. There were some fouls from the American too which were not registered, Indias chef de mission P K Muralidhara Raja said. Raja,also the Indian Boxing Federations secretary general,said India would not accept the decision. However,he admitted that it was an uphill task to get another reversal. Not many options are there,as in such cases the jury decision is final because they replay the bout and watch it minutely before changing the decision. We will still try to find a way forward. Our appeal in Sumit Sangwans case wasnt accepted,though that was a close bout too, he said. Coach G S Sandhu said the mood in the camp was depressed,and didnt sound very hopeful for there are few precedents of a reinstatement being overturned. But the fact remains,that Krishan,who looked tired in the end,received a mighty barrage,with the American twice breaking through his closed guard. The bout was close,and looked like leaning in favour of the American who had bounced back in the final round,and looked in command. Even the momentary indecision on the part of the ring referee where he held both hands mid-air,as well as Krishans own body language after being declared the winner pointed to a precarious decision that was further than what a daylight robbery would suggest. Krishan came into London as Indias brightest hope in the Olympics,but the reinstatement might well be closer to a fair call than many Indians would admit or like.
