Commonwealth Games: Arundhati Choudhary beats Rosie Eccles to reach 70kg final
Indian boxer Arundhati Choudhary secured her place in the women's 70kg final at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow with a hard-fought victory over Wales' Rosie Eccles in the semi-final on Saturday. The bout, held at the SEC Centre, saw the 29-year-old from Kota, Rajasthan, overcome the defending champion in a contest that drew strong reactions from the crowd.
Eccles, who had announced her retirement before the tournament, entered the ring as the Welsh flag bearer and was widely expected to defend the gold medal she won at the 2022 Birmingham Games. The Glasgow crowd showed clear support for the Welsh boxer, but Choudhary delivered a composed and precise performance to halt those plans.
From the opening bell, Eccles pressed forward aggressively, using her southpaw stance to apply relentless pressure. Choudhary, fighting orthodox, relied on a combination of a right cross to the body followed by a left straight, a tactic that proved effective as she moved backwards to avoid Eccles' advances. The Indian's cleaner punching earned her the first round on all judges' scorecards.
The second round saw Eccles increase the tempo, swinging more wildly in an attempt to disrupt Choudhary's rhythm. The exchange became more open, with both boxers letting their hands go in a frenetic pace. Despite the chaos, Choudhary again found the mark more consistently and took the round unanimously.
In the third round, Choudhary tried to box on the back foot, circling the ring to conserve her lead. However, Eccles, knowing this was her final amateur bout, refused to go quietly. She turned the last three minutes into a scrap, throwing heavy shots from both sides. While Eccles won the final round on all judges' cards, including a 10-8 score from one official, it was not enough to overturn the deficit from the earlier rounds.
The judges scored the bout 4-0 in Choudhary's favour, with four cards reading 29-27 and one card even at 28-28. The victory sends Choudhary into her first-ever multi-sport event final, where she will face England's Chantelle Reid for the gold medal on Sunday.
Earlier in the day, two other Indian women boxers also advanced to their respective finals with commanding displays. In the 54kg category, Preeti Pawar earned a unanimous 5-0 decision against Zambia's Catherine Mwape. She will meet Canada's Scarlett Delgado in the final.
Jaismine Lamboria, competing in the 57kg division, stopped Lesotho's Rapelang Maselela in the second round. The referee intervened after Jaismine repeatedly connected with clean punches. She will next face Ireland's Michaela Walsh for the gold medal.
The Indian boxing contingent has now secured final spots in several weight categories, with Choudhary, Preeti, and Jaismine all in contention for gold. The remaining bouts are scheduled for Sunday at the SEC Centre.
