Boxer Nasir Bashir goes down in Glasgow

By Norman Katende in Glasgow

Commonwealth Games
Boxing Bantam weight (56kg)

Quarterfinal results
Michael Conlan (NIR) BT Nasir Bashir (UGA) Pts
Sean McGoldricks (SRI) BT Sonjica Ayabonga (RSA) Pts
Qais Ashfaq (ENG) BT Joe Ham (SCO) Pts
Benson Gicharu (KEN) bt Tafari Ebanks (CAY) Pts

Semi-finals on Saturday
Michael Conlan (NIR) v Sean McGoldricks (SRI)
Qais Ashfaq (ENG) v Benson Gicharu (KEN)

Uganda’s hopes for a boxing medal were quashed after boxer Nasir Bashir failed in his quarterfinal campaign against Ireland’s Michael Conlan on points.

At the SECC centre in central Glasgow, Bashir needed a win to be assured of a minimum of a bronze medal, which is given to both semi-finalists, but   his poor guards and movement gave his opponent an opportunity to score easy points.

Bashir, who beat Tanzania’s Patrick Polina in the second round, after a bye in the first round, was more by the Uganda technical team.

There were no Uganda technical members to the ringside in this penultimate stage, forcing their Kenyan counterparts to come in to save the situation from embarrassment.

The Kenyans knew very little of his weak and strong points and they were also concentrating on another Kenyan, Benson Gicharu, who was due to fight at the same level.

Gicharu won his bout, which meant that he would have had an opportunity to meet with Bashir at the final if both had advanced and won their respective semi-finals.

Bashir started his fight at a slow pace, exposing his lack of guard both on the head and stomach.

This gave Conlan an opportunity, who had a better reach to score points easily.

In the second round, Bashir tried to make up for the deficit, but did not improve on his guarding as Conlan stretched the lead.

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