IMPHAL, Jan 28: It will be the beginning of a new phase for celebrated Indian woman boxer L Sarita Devi as she will make her foray into the professional circuit by taking on veteran Hungarian Zsofia Bedo in her debut bout, here tomorrow.
The five-bout Fight Night, being conducted by the Indian Boxing Council, will also witness Pinki Jangra and veteran Som Bahadur Poon making their professional debut.
Sarita, a former world champion and Asian Games bronze-medallist, had a face-off with her opponent Zsofia here today. The 59-pro bout veteran from Hungary has experience on her side, but Sarita exuded confidence that she had trained hard to silence her opponent.
�These (professional) boxers always make tall claims. I have trained really hard, my coach is among the best in professional boxing, he is monitoring my progress. He is confident, I have trained up to 8 hours every day. I am playing for the pride of Manipur, I am playing for the pride of India,� Sarita said.
�I have to give a gift of victory to my fans. Ask her (Zsofia) after the bout tomorrow, you will find her looking for excuses. She made fun of my emotions yes I cry, because I am not ready to lose,� she added.
Zsofia was quick to brush aside Sarita�s assertions.
�She (Sarita Devi) is starting her career. She will start learning about pro boxing. Her amateur past is nothing here. I have come so far, it is only to win. If u have fan support, there is pressure on you. May be everyone knows here who is Sarita. On Sunday evening they will know there is a girl from Hungary Zsofia Bedo, who beat Sarita in her home city,� she said.
Glasgow Commonwealth 2014 Games bronze-medallist, Pinki too is confident of a winning start to her professional career. Pinki will take on Claudia Ferenczi of Slovakia. � PTI
