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Indian boxer Jadumani Mandengbam assured himself of at least a bronze medal at the 2026 Commonwealth Games after defeating Zambia's Mwale in the men's quarterfinals to book his place in the last four on Tuesday night in Glasgow.
Jadumani grew stronger as the contest progressed, overcoming a closely fought opening round before taking complete control over the remaining two rounds to seal a unanimous decision victory, according to ESPN. The Indian earned a 4-1 verdict in the opening round despite facing sustained pressure from his Zambian opponent, who began aggressively with a series of quick combinations. Jadumani responded with disciplined boxing and accurate counterattacks to edge ahead on the judges' scorecards. From the second round onwards, the bout became one-sided as the Indian dictated the pace with sharp movement and precise punching. He swept the second round unanimously before producing another commanding display in the final three minutes. The judges scored the contest 30-27 on three scorecards and 29-28 on the other two, confirming Jadumani's place in the semifinals and guaranteeing India another boxing medal at the Glasgow Games. Meanwhile, India also made a positive start in the men's pairs bowls competition, with Dinesh Kumar and Navneet Singh defeating the Cook Islands in a dramatic sectional play encounter, according to ESPN. The Indian duo recovered after losing the opening set 5-3 to level the contest by taking the second set 6-5, forcing the match into a tie-break. The Cook Islands pair had seized the initiative in the first set by collecting three points in the fourth end after the scores were locked at 2-1, before closing out the set comfortably. India looked in complete control early in the second set, racing to a 5-0 lead after the opening two ends. However, the Cook Islands mounted a spirited comeback, reducing the deficit and taking the contest to the brink before the Indians held their composure to clinch the set by a single point. With the scores level after two sets, Dinesh and Navneet kept their nerve in the deciding tie-break, edging the six-shot shootout 1-0 to register their opening victory of the campaign. India has enjoyed a strong campaign in Glasgow, winning 12 medals so far -- two gold, six silver and three bronze. India's medallists are Mirabai Chanu (gold, weightlifting), Sharmila Dhankar (gold, women's shot put F57), Rishikanta Singh (silver, weightlifting), Muthupandi Raja (silver, weightlifting), Gyaneshwari Yadav (silver, weightlifting), Sarvesh Kushare (silver, men's high jump), Gulveer Singh (silver, 10,000m), Harjinder Kaur (silver, weightlifting), Valluri Ajaya Babu (silver, weightlifting), Bindyarani Devi (bronze, weightlifting), Shilpa K. Shyla (bronze, women's shot put F57) and Jhandu Kumar (bronze, para powerlifting). (ANI)
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