MANCHESTER, Aug 3: Haider Ali mitigated the pain and shock of his compatriots to an extent when he outpointed Indian Som Bahadur Pun to land Pakistan its first gold medal in the 17th Commonwealth Games on Saturday.

Haider overpowered his Indian rival by a wide margin of 28-10 to bring glory to his country in the boxing ring after the Pakistan hockey team had suffered a humiliating 7-1 defeat by New Zealand in the semifinals of men’s field hockey competitions Friday.

Haider dominated the four-round final bout in the feather-weight category from the very word go, taking a 6-3 lead in the first round and extending it to 12-4 by the second one.

The blue-costumed Haider landed some excruciating punches on the face and head of his opponent who virtually threw in the towel after trailing 8-21 by the third round.

“I am really glad that I gave my contingent something to cheer about after the surprising loss in the hockey semifinal on Friday,” said the Quetta-born Haider after his resounding triumph.

“I was determined to carry the fight to the Indian and I am glad that my compatriots prayers were answered”, said the gold-medalist pugilist in post-bout comments.

Daniel Geale of Australia beat Kwanele Zulu of South Africa to win the welterweight gold medal 26-17 on points.

Zambia’s Kennedy Kanyanta won the flyweight boxing gold medal with a 25-12 points victory over Botswana’s Lechedzani Luza.

IRSHAD WINS 2ND BRONZE