Sofia, (Bulgaria), Feb 9 : Commonwealth Games gold medallist Amit Panghal and National champion Sachin entered the semifinals of the 75th Strandja Memorial Boxing Tournament in Sofia, Bulgaria on Thursday. Amit (51kg) continued his fine form to grab a 5-0 unanimous decision win over Aldarkhishig Battulga of Mongolia. In the 57kg category, Sachin got the better of Kapanadze Giorgi of Georgia.

Coming from a dominating win in his last match, Amit Panghal looked lethal. He controlled the bout right from the start giving his opponent little to no chance to make a comeback. The boxer from Haryana continued to build on the momentum and did not lose the grip of the game even for a second.

Amit was so dominant in the bout that he won each round with a 5-0 verdict en route making his way into the semifinals on Saturday.

Sachin (57kg) was equally dominating against Kapanadze Giorgi of Georgia. The southpaw boxer took some time to find his rhythm but once settled, he looked like a force to reckon with. Sachin won the first round 4-1 and took the game heads on in the second one, using his counter-attacking game to strike some effective left hooks. The opponent tried to be more aggressive in the third round but Sachin comfortably won the bout with a 5-0 verdict.

Sachin will now face Ukraine's Abduraimov Aider in the semifinals on Saturday.

Playing his first bout of the tournament after receiving a bye in the pre-quarters, Rajat (67kg) wasted no time and straight went into aggressive mode. Within 37 seconds, Rajat delivered a straight jab, breaking his opponent's defence and disbalancing him, causing the referee to stop the bout and declare Rajat the winner by knockout. He will take on Georgia's Guruli Lasha in the semifinals on Saturday.

Lalit (54kg) made a quarterfinal exit after losing the bout against Uzbekistan's Nortojiev Khujanazar. The Indian pugilist was put on the back foot from the start by the former World Youth bronze medallist. His relentless attack combined with quick feet became lethal as the bout progressed, resulting in a 0-5 loss for Lalit.

Later on Friday night, Akash (71kg) will go head to head against Mckeever Eugene of Ireland, Deepak (75kg) will meet Ummatalievu Javokhir of Uzbekistan and Abhimanyu Loura (80kg) will face China's Tuohetaerbieke Tanglatihan.

Late on Thursday, Naveen Kumar (92kg) made his way into the semifinals with a 4-1 win over Kuttybekov Abzal of Kazakhstan. He will be up against Georgia's Giorgii Kushitashvili on Saturday. Meanwhile, Jugnoo (86kg) and Sagar (+92kg) bowed out of the tournament with an identical 0-5 loss against Uzbekistan's Djalolov Samandar and Zokirov Jakhongir.

Along with Amit (51kg), Sachin (57kg) and Rajat (67kg). Nikhat Zareen (50kg), Arundhati Choudhary (66kg), Barun Singh (48kg), and Naveen Kumar (92kg) will compete together with the winners from today's remaining bouts in the semifinals on Saturday.

The Strandja Memorial Tournament is one of Europe's oldest international sports competitions and is witnessing the participation of over 300 pugilists from 30 countries.

/IANS