World Boxing Cup Astana: Minakshi, Pooja Rani, Sanju advance to semi-finals

India’s strong start at the World Boxing Cup Astana continued with Pooja Rani, Sanju, and Minakshi advancing to the semifinals of their respective categories at the Beeline Arena in Astana, Kazakhstan, on Wednesday.

Despite missing the Brazil World Cup due to delayed National Championships, Indian female boxers made an impressive debut at the 2025 World Boxing Cup circuit with a strong performance in Astana.

The day started with the women's 48 kg quarterfinal, where Minakshi put up a strong show to clinch a dominant 5-0 win over Yi-Xuan Guo of Chinese Taipei to confirm her a medal from the event.

This was Minakshi's second bout of the tournament after the preliminary round, where she got the better of Australian boxer Madeleine Bowen on Monday.

Following her, the experienced two-time Asian champion Pooja Rani also confirmed her a medal in the women's 80 kg category with a split decision (4-1) win over Kazakhstan's Gulsaya Yerzhan.

In the evening session, Sanju (60 Kg) also booked her spot in the final four with a 5-0 win over American boxer Jajaira Gonzalez to confirm a medal from the event.

Meanwhile, Brazil World Cup bronze medalist lightweight boxer Jadumani Singh (50 Kg) faced a quarterfinal exit against the Filipino boxer, Jay Bryan Baricuatro, in a tightly contested bout, 2-3.

India still has one more quarterfinal bout in the evening session later today, where Vishal will take on Turkish boxer Emrah Yasar in the men's 90 Kg category.

On the other hand, Manish Rathore (50 Kg Men), Sanamcha Chnau (70 Kg Women) exited the competition in pre-quarterfinals, whereas Muskan (75 Kg ) lost out in her quarterfinal bout.