Akash Tuqir out of the AIBA Youth Worlds
Hadley's Akash Tuqir is out of the AIBA World Youth Championship after a hotly-disputed points loss in Russia today.
Tuqir felt aggrieved after being on the wrong side of a split decision to the Dominican Republic's Luis Reynaldo Mosquea Nunez at 52kg in St Petersburg, writes Craig Birch.
The 18-year-old flyweight looked to have controlled the three-round bout, but the judges saw the fight differently in the last of the preliminary ties at the Sibur Arena.
The tall southpaw kept him at range in the first round, working the jab off the right hand before launching left uppercuts when they got in close.
His skills worked in round two as he tagged Nunez to the chin with a straight left, with his smaller opponent looking to cut the gap to throw his big bombs as Tuqir kept his hands moving.
Tuqir switched up his attacks in the third and last round, clipping Nunez with the right hand as he came forward on the way to closing out the contest.
He held his arms aloft expecting the result to go his way, as the cards were called into play. To the astonishment of him and his corner, Tuqir had been beaten on a split decision.
He had previously defeated India's Anwar Khyali, who was dangerous with the right hand, on a split to get off the mark on Saturday.
He represents the Len Woodhall Community Club at club level and has won England Youth and European Youth titles. This was his last competition before stepping up to the seniors.
