KARACHI, Oct 20: Pakistan’s star boxer Meherullah said on Monday frequent changes in his weight category was hampering his performance in the ring.
“Of course I feel weak and lazy after reducing my weight. Although I won a gold recently, but it is a fact that I was bothered during Green Hill Cup,” Meher told Dawn.
The diminutive boxer from Karachi’s Lyari area was asked by the Pakistan Boxing Federation (PBF) to switch over from featherweight to bantamweight days before the international tournament organized in Karachi earlier this month.
Asghar Ali Shah, another ace Pakistan pugilist, was also directed to reduce his weight to change his weight division from light-welterweight to lightweight.
The changes in weight categories of the two top boxers have drawn sharp criticism from different quarters including a former PBF official Ali Akbar Shah. PBF, however, claims the boxers have been asked by coach Reinaldo Alveraz to reduce their weights.
Meher and Asghar have once again been asked to return to their original weight categories barely two weeks ahead of the inaugural Afro-Asian Games to be hosted by Indian city of Hyderabad this month. They are scheduled to leave along with the national squad for India on Tuesday.
According to Meher, the PBF has asked him to return to featherweight since he had participated in Busan Asian Games last year in the same category.
Meher said although he had been facing difficulty in maintaining his form after the sudden changes in weight category, he had no choice except to obey what he had been instructed to do.
“I feel the difference in my performance, especially when I reduced my weight as asked before the international competition in Karachi. But I have to do it and perform well, be it bantamweight or featherweight,” the 22-year-old said.
Meher said he used to be a bantamweight but had to fight as a featherweight in the Asian Games to fill in the space created after Haider Ali opted to move to England to become a professional.
Asked in which weight category he would like to fight and felt at ease, Meher replied: “I can’t say anything for sure about that. But one thing I know is that I have to deliver no matter what my weight category is.”
“I had shed some two and half kilos before the tournament in Karachi, but now I have to increase the weight I had reduced. And I will do it by stuffing my stomach with food,” he said laughingly when asked how he would cope with the new situation.
Meher has won golds in featherweight at last year’s Asian Games, Commonwealth championship in Kuala Lumpur and China international tournament recently.
He came into limelight after becoming the only Pakistani to win the gold in the Asiad. The feat enabled him to become a millionaire when he was showered with cash prizes including five million rupees awarded by the government.
APP adds: A former boxing official strongly protested and criticised the selection of a hockey umpire as the manager of boxing team for Afro Asian Games scheduled to be held in India from Oct 24.
Former joint secretary, Pakistan Boxing Federation (PBF) Ali Akbar Shah said that this was a cruel joke with the sport and added that appointing a person associated with some other sport would do no good to boxing.
Shah said that this decision by PBF was very surprising and amazing as this was a key and important post.
He pointed out that at the time when two mega events i.e. SAF Games and Olympic Games were in the offing the decision will harm the sport in a big way.