New Delhi, 12 August 2017: A star-studded final match of the inaugural season of Super Boxing League saw Maratha Yoddhas being crowned as the champions after they defeated Haryana Warriors by a score line of 10-9 in a nail-biting finish here at the Siri Fort Squash & Badminton Stadium.
It was Maratha Yoddhas who started the final fight night on the front-foot as they won the first two bouts through Sandeep Singh and Andy Chuaua in their respective categories to give their team a 6-0 lead as Mumbai Assassins’ owner Sohail Khan, Bollywood actor Arbaaz Khan, singer Kanika Kapoor and director, producer Anurag Kashyap witnessed the action. However, to the delight of Haryana Warriors’ owner Sonu Sood, who was also cheering his side on, it was Suman Kumari, Sandeep Nain and Sukhdeep Singh who won their respective bouts to take a 9-6 lead after five bouts. The turning point of the match was in the last bout when Sandeep Chhikara won by a Technical Knock Out to win the league for his team, Maratha Yoddhas.
The first bout of the night was between debutant Sandeep Singh from the Maratha Yoddhas and Naveen Nehra from the Haryana Warriors in the Feather Weight category. It was Sandeep Singh who hit some great moves and combinations on Nehra to steal the victory by Unanimous Decision and give his side a 3-0 lead.
In the second bout of the night, it was up to Haryana Warriors’ Parmod Kumar to cut down the lead for his team as he faced Andy Chuaua from the Maratha Yoddhas in the Welter Weight category. However, the Warriors’ man could not succeed in his ambition as Andy Chuaua was awarded the victory by Split Decision after four Rounds. It meant that the Maratha Yoddhas extended their lead to 6 points.
In the third bout of the night, it was Haryana Warriors’ Suman Kumari who impressed for her side as she faced Maratha Yoddhas’ Lalnunfeli in the Super Fly category. The latter started the match aggressively but Kumari kept her composure to make a comeback in the last two Rounds to win the match by Unanimous Decision which saw Warriors open their account on the night.
In the fourth bout of the night, it was Haryana Warriors’ Sandeep Nain who caused an upset when he beat Maratha Yoddhas’ skipper Deepak Tanwar in the Middle Weight category. Coming into the match, Tanwar had won all his four bouts in SBL, but it was Nain who produced the miraculous victory which was awarded by Unanimous Decision. It meant that Warriors equalised the scores at 6-6 after four bouts.
The fifth match saw a Super Middle Weight category bout between Maratha Yoddhas’ Vivek Jangra and Haryana Warriors’ Sukhdeep Singh. It was the latter who started the match positively as the 22-year old beat Jangra by Unanimous Decision to take a 9-6 lead for his side.
Just like in the semi-final, Maratha Yoddhas’ Sandeep Chhikara was assigned with the difficult task of getting a victory in the last bout to make the scores level or give his side the win, as he took on Jagdeep Singh of the Haryana Warriors in the Heavy Weight category. Chhikara started to hit aggressive punches in the first Round itself and took down Singh at least four times. Yoddhas’ Chhikara showed his power again as he took down Singh for one final time as referee stopped the match and decided to award Chhikara with a Technical Knock Out victory. It meant that the Maratha Yoddhas won the match 10-9 to steal the Super Boxing League trophy.
