Devendro: A Dark Knight rises in the ring
India's Devendro Singh reacts after winning his fight against Mongolia's Serdamba Pureverdorj (unseen) during the men's light flyweight boxing competition at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. (AP Photo)
Like a Dark Knight, Laishram Devendro Singh has risen from the shadows.
In the beginning, he was just another Indian with stars in his eyes and an Olympic dream in his gloves; hardly anybody gave him a second look, let alone a chance, in the highly competitive light-flyweight category.
He needed only 2 minutes and 24 seconds to change all that; as he launched himself on Honduras' Figueroa, even the referee couldn't conceal an amused smile. Everybody promptly fell in love with him. Here was a boxer with the manner of a free spirit, the force of a typhoon.
Devendro, a 19-year-old lad from Manipur, is evidently unorthodox; indeed, he is more like a street-fighter, a pitiless bully who doesn't follow any rules. But there is a method in his madness, a science behind his unusual style.
He starts off quietly, like a professor in class; but he is actually building himself up into a storm. Without a warning, he unleashes himself, even transforming into a machine-gun. Rat-a-tat-a-tat. You can almost hear the roar of the gun as punches come in a torrent.
He almost runs after his adversary when the punching begins, like he wants to grab him and collar him. Take this, bad boy, and this and this... It's always a flurry; he doesn't follow the normal trait of a predator: hit and retreat and come back for another attack. Caution is perhaps not in his blood.
The usual sceptics laughed after his opening round win (he has beaten a clueless schoolboy); he was ready for the big test though: Serdamba Purevdorj, a world champ and a silver medallist at Beijing. A southpaw to boot, he even towered over Devendro.
Devendro kept his guard up and danced around on twinkle toes, waiting for Serdamba to make the first move. It came 45 long seconds later, as they sized each other up.
Devendro evaded the right and ducked under the left; then, almost in a flash, he was after Serdamba. He had to jump each time just to make contact; but he did that like a joyful little boy, making sure that he didn't lose either precision or power in the process.
The Mongolian was caught by surprise first, and then a flurry of lefts and rights, and finally a mixture of jabs and punches. By the second round, he realized that he was up against a pocket dynamo, with no place to hide in the ring; he hit the canvas twice and was even subjected to a standing count.
It was clear that the fight had gone out of him; but Devendro was not yet done. He began the chase along with the bell in the third round, and bouncing and running after him, inflicted more damage.
The young Indian, incidentally, takes tips from his sister, a national champion herself, on a daily basis; she points out the flaws in his game and even passes on notes about his next opponent. He should, therefore, be well prepared when he takes on Ireland's Paddy Barnes in the quarterfinals, a bronze medallist at Beijing.
If Devendro can somehow pull that one off too, the Dark Knight will never be in the shadows again.
In the beginning, he was just another Indian with stars in his eyes and an Olympic dream in his gloves; hardly anybody gave him a second look, let alone a chance, in the highly competitive light-flyweight category.
He needed only 2 minutes and 24 seconds to change all that; as he launched himself on Honduras' Figueroa, even the referee couldn't conceal an amused smile. Everybody promptly fell in love with him. Here was a boxer with the manner of a free spirit, the force of a typhoon.
Devendro, a 19-year-old lad from Manipur, is evidently unorthodox; indeed, he is more like a street-fighter, a pitiless bully who doesn't follow any rules. But there is a method in his madness, a science behind his unusual style.
He starts off quietly, like a professor in class; but he is actually building himself up into a storm. Without a warning, he unleashes himself, even transforming into a machine-gun. Rat-a-tat-a-tat. You can almost hear the roar of the gun as punches come in a torrent.
He almost runs after his adversary when the punching begins, like he wants to grab him and collar him. Take this, bad boy, and this and this... It's always a flurry; he doesn't follow the normal trait of a predator: hit and retreat and come back for another attack. Caution is perhaps not in his blood.
The usual sceptics laughed after his opening round win (he has beaten a clueless schoolboy); he was ready for the big test though: Serdamba Purevdorj, a world champ and a silver medallist at Beijing. A southpaw to boot, he even towered over Devendro.
Devendro kept his guard up and danced around on twinkle toes, waiting for Serdamba to make the first move. It came 45 long seconds later, as they sized each other up.
Devendro evaded the right and ducked under the left; then, almost in a flash, he was after Serdamba. He had to jump each time just to make contact; but he did that like a joyful little boy, making sure that he didn't lose either precision or power in the process.
The Mongolian was caught by surprise first, and then a flurry of lefts and rights, and finally a mixture of jabs and punches. By the second round, he realized that he was up against a pocket dynamo, with no place to hide in the ring; he hit the canvas twice and was even subjected to a standing count.
It was clear that the fight had gone out of him; but Devendro was not yet done. He began the chase along with the bell in the third round, and bouncing and running after him, inflicted more damage.
The young Indian, incidentally, takes tips from his sister, a national champion herself, on a daily basis; she points out the flaws in his game and even passes on notes about his next opponent. He should, therefore, be well prepared when he takes on Ireland's Paddy Barnes in the quarterfinals, a bronze medallist at Beijing.
If Devendro can somehow pull that one off too, the Dark Knight will never be in the shadows again.
(5 votes, average: 3.80 out of 5)
