Guangzhou: Preeti Beniwal gave India a rousing start in women's boxing as she advanced to the 60kg quarterfinals with a thumping win in the discipline which made its Asian Games debut here on Sunday.
Beniwal out-punched Mongolia's Erdene Suvd Oyungerel 8-2 in the pre-quarterfinals.
Beniwal, the sister-in-law of star men's boxer Akhil Kumar, will next face Thailand's Tassamalee, who blanked Sri Lanka's Niranjala Senanayake 8-0.
The Haryana-boxer took a sizeable 4-1 lead in the opening round and did not allow her rival to land a single scoring blow in the second and third round.
In the final two minutes, Beniwal picked up another couple of points to seal a comprehensive win.
Tomorrow, five-time world champion M C Mary Kom (51kg), who got a bye in the pre-quarters, will open her campaign against Chinese Taipei's Meng Chieh Ping.
Kavita Goyat will face off against Kazakhstan's Marina Volnova in the middleweight 75kg quarterfinals. All three Indian boxers are just a win away from assuring themselves of medals at the event.
Women's boxing is also set to make its Olympic debut at the London edition in 2012 after getting the International Olympic Committee's nod.
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