Former Asian Games gold medallist Vikas Krishan took a pounding from second seed Bektemir Melikuziev of Uzbekistan in the quarter-finals of the men’s middleweight (75 kg) and bowed out of the Rio Olympic Games on Monday night.
With Shiva Thapa (56kg) and Manoj Kumar (64kg) already out of contention, for the first time in eight years the Indian boxing challenge at the Games ended without a medal.
This is the second successive Games that the male boxers failed to win a medal. In 2012 a bronze had come through M C Mary Kom (51kg).
Vijender Singh (75kg) thus remains the first and only Indian male boxer to win an Olympic medal, a bronze in 2008 Beijing Games.
Seventh seeded Vikas was simply no match for the world No. 3, a World Championships silver medallist and the reigning Asian champion, a title he won after beating Vikas in the final last year.
The overtly cautious Indian hesitated in opening an attack for most part of the first round while Melikuziev scored at will with his lethal left hand.
The second round was even worse for the Indian as Melikuziev gained firm control of the bout, also using his right jab to good effect.
In fact, one such blow led to Vikas spitting his gum-shield out and even before he could recover, a left hook from Melikuziev left him dazed.
Such was the power and precision of Melikuziev's hitting, that two of the judges ruled 10-8 in his favour in the second round.
Vikas, a former World Championships bronze medallist, completely lost the plot in the final three minutes, struggling to keep his balance after the pounding he took in the first two rounds.
In the end it was a stroll for the 20-year-old Melikuziev, who was hitting at will against a near stationary Vikas. It was no surprise that judges gave him a unanimous 3-0 verdict.
