Annoyed with himself after settling for a third successive bronze medal, Indian boxer Vijender Singh on Saturday said he still can’t figure out where he went wrong in the World Championship semifinals and blamed it on bad luck.
Talking to PTI after his 3-7 loss to Uzbekistan’s Abbos Atoev in the middle weight semifinals on Friday night, Vijender said he went into the ring confident of a win.
“I had everything planned. I was very sure of beating Atoev but then I don’t know what went wrong. I am still trying to figure that out. I was really very annoyed with myself because it was a golden opportunity,” Vijender said from Milan.
ADVERTISEMENT
“But I am a firm believer in destiny and may be it was meant to be like that. I just didn’t have the luck. Fortune has favoured me all through but that was not to be last night,” he added.
He might have lost but Olympic bronze medallist Vijender still managed a historic feat by clinching India’s maiden medal at the World Championships.
“That’s the only consolation. I go from here as India’s first medallist at the World Championships. That makes me proud,” he said.
ADVERTISEMENT
The bronze he picked up in Milan is Vijender’s third consecutive this year as he had settled for third-place finishes at the European Grand Prix event in Czech Republic and the Asian Championships.
“A little jinx of my own that I have to break at the earliest. I know I will do it soon. But yes it’s quite annoying,” he said.
The world number two, who was given the top billing in Milan, hoped that his performance would help him secure a lucrative contract with one of the franchisees of the World Series of Boxing, a professional style multi—million dollar league set to take off next November.
“I hope to get a good deal. I have got people interested in me. But WSB is still a long time away,” he said.
The 23-year-old said he would give his bruised body some much-needed rest after returning to India on Monday.
“All my bouts have been quite punishing. I think I will take a break now and rejuvenate myself. The past four months have been quite gruelling,” he said.