BACK IN THE RING

Her Asian Boxing Championships gold has only raised Preeti Sai Pawar’s ambitions in the run-up to the Commonwealth and Asian Games

- —Shail Desai

The mood was tentative when Preeti Sai Pawar stepped into the arena at the Asian Championships in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, in April.

The doubts were soon past her. The bantamweight boxer scored unanimous decisions in all her bouts, and bagged gold. “It’s been three years since I won the Asian Games bronze and much has changed since, both technically and physically,” says Pawar.