India picked up another gold in the boxing ring at the Commonwealth Games, with Bhiwani's Sakshi Chaudhary defeating England's Ruby 5-0 in the women's 51kg final. The bout in Glasgow was a one-sided affair from the opening bell, with the judges scoring every round in Sakshi's favour.
What the win means for the medal tally
The gold is far more than just another medal for the contingent. It is India's fourth medal in boxing at the Glasgow Commonwealth Games and the third of those to be gold, taking the boxing squad's overall haul to three golds and one silver. Sakshi's win has also pushed India's total medal count at these Commonwealth Games to 31, of which 9 are gold.
From a quarrelsome childhood to the boxing ring
Sakshi Chaudhary hails from Bhiwani, long regarded as a cradle of Indian boxing. As a child she had a distinctly combative streak and often got into scuffles with people around her. To channel that restless energy in the right direction, her parents introduced her to boxing in 2012. Her father is a farmer by profession while her mother is a homemaker.
Inspired by Vijender Singh, trained under Jagdish Singh
Vijender Singh's bronze medal run at the 2008 Beijing Olympics left a deep impression on Sakshi and became a major reason she took up the sport. In 2012 she began training under the well known coach Jagdish Singh, who had also coached Vijender. Over the following years she steadily sharpened her skills and established herself as one of Indian boxing's most promising emerging talents. The 24 year old has been part of the national camp at the National Institute of Sports (NIS) in Patiala and currently serves as a Havildar in the Indian Army.
From junior world champion to Commonwealth gold
Sakshi's competitive record has been impressive. In 2015 she beat American national champion Yaricel Ramirez in the final of the AIBA Junior Women's World Championship in Taipei to become junior world champion. She is also a two time Youth World Champion. Last year she won gold in the 54kg category at the World Boxing Cup held in Astana. Before earning her place on the Commonwealth Games squad, Sakshi proved her mettle by defeating some of the country's biggest names in the sport, including multiple time world champion Nikhat Zareen and former national champion Meenakshi Hudda.
