Asian Games: Ankush Panghal reaches 80kg semi-finals and assures a medal

Ankush Panghal reached the semi-finals of the men's 80kg boxing at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games on Sunday, 27 September 2026, and with that result assured at least a bronze medal. Sportstar reported that the 20-year-old from Haryana beat Tajikistan's Nekruz Salimov by a unanimous 5-0 decision in the quarterfinal.

The Times of India reported the judges' cards. It said Panghal took the opening round on all five scorecards, and took the second round 5-0 as well. It said Salimov won the third round 4-1. Four judges scored the bout 29-28 for Panghal. The fifth scored it 30-27. That is a 5-0 result on who won the bout, with the last round going against the Indian. Sportstar reported the same shape of the contest: the final round 4-1 for Salimov, after the first two rounds had been enough for Panghal.

The Times of India said Panghal won Commonwealth Games gold in Glasgow last month and that the Asian Games quarterfinal was his debut at these Games. It reported a straight left and a right hook among the punches in the first round, and a left hook in the second. Those lines are the paper's description of the boxing. The numbers that decide the bout are the cards above.

In this competition both boxers who lose a semi-final receive bronze. There is no separate bronze-medal bout. A quarterfinal win therefore assures a medal. It does not decide silver or gold. A semi-final win would leave a final still to be boxed. A semi-final loss would leave bronze.

Sportstar said the semi-final opponent is Uzbekistan's Fazliddin Erkinboev, with the bout scheduled for Tuesday at 11:00 a.m. IST. The Times of India, in its report of the Salimov bout, said the quarterfinal win guarantees at least bronze and that the semi-final was still ahead. It did not name Erkinboev in the passage used here. The name and the Tuesday time come from Sportstar.

The same Sportstar report said two other Indian boxers also reached semi-finals on Sunday. Parveen Hooda won her women's 65kg quarterfinal against Navbakhor Khamidova 5-0, and is due to meet China's Li Shu at 10:15 a.m. IST on Tuesday. Narender Berwal's men's +90kg quarterfinal against Thailand's Adthapong Saengtep ended by referee stoppage in the first round. His semi-final, against Kazakhstan's Aibek Oralbay, is listed for 11:30 a.m. IST on Tuesday. An earlier Times of India story the same day had reported only Panghal and Hooda as through, and had listed Berwal's quarterfinal as still to come. The later Sportstar account includes Berwal's win. The Times of India called Panghal the first Indian boxer to assure a medal at these Games.

Sportstar and The Times of India also reported that Sachin Siwach lost a quarterfinal to Japan's Shunsuke Kitamoto by a unanimous decision. They did not agree on the weight. Sportstar called the bout the men's 70kg and said Kitamoto won 5-0 despite losing the last round. The Times of India called it the men's 60kg and the score 0-5. The Sentinel also called it the 60kg, with round scores of 1-4, 0-5 and 4-1, and a 29-28 result for Kitamoto. This report states both weights and does not choose one.

A Hindustan Times day wrap said Indian boxers assured three medals by reaching semi-finals. That wrap did not name Panghal or give the Salimov score. The 5-0 and the round scores used here are from Sportstar and The Times of India.

What's next

Panghal's semi-final against Fazliddin Erkinboev is scheduled for Tuesday, 29 September 2026, at 11:00 a.m. IST, Sportstar reported. The winner of that bout boxes for gold. The loser receives bronze.