GILGIT: Usman Wazeer, Pakistan’s young professional boxing sensation, in a superb performance knocked India’s Thilak Selvam out in a welterweight bout at the World Youth Boxing Championship in Bangkok on Thursday.

The six-round bout at the Thai Boxing Arena in the Thai capital hardly made it past the first few seconds of the opening round when Usman delivered a powerful punch that knocked Selvam to the ground.

Struggling to recover, Selvam received another heavy blow from Usman after which the Indian fighter couldn’t recover.

Seeing that the Indian was unable to respond, the referee stopped the fight while declaring Usman as the winner on technical grounds.

Hailing from Astore district of Gilgit-Baltistan, Usman by winning this fight extended his unbeaten run to 14.

Usman, who launched his professional career in 2018, has recorded a number of prestigious global and regional titles.

Nicknamed ‘Asian Boy’ and widely regarded as one of the finest contemporary boxers in the country, the 24-year-old Usman is the first Pakistani currently an undefeated welterweight boxer and holds the Asian Boxing Feder­ation (ABF) Asian title.

In his speech after the bout, Usman called upon the prime ministers of Pakistan and India to work towards fostering better relations between the two neighbouring nations.

“People in both Pakistan and India want durable peace between the two countries,” a jubilant Usman said.

Published in Dawn, September 27th, 2024