On the morning of his pre-quarterfinal bout, Vikas Krishan Yadav had said that patience and timing would be the keys to unlocking a positive result. Exactly 12 hours later, the 24-year-old unfurled the perfect combination of timing, patience and some deadly punching to storm into the quarterfinals of the middleweight (75 kg) category defeating Turkey’s Sipal Onder by a unanimous verdict (3-0).

Vikas won the first round two rounds comfortably, peppering the Turk with some well-worked combinations and unsettling him early with a couple of brilliantly placed uppercuts. In the third, operating at a lower gear, the Turk seemed to land a few hits but the judges still deemed the Indian to be a superior boxer with the scorecard declaring him the undisputed victor.

The Southpaw will now face Uzbekistan’s Bektemir Melikuziev in the quarterfinals after the latter blew past Australia’s Daniel Lewis in his opening fight. The winner of the quarterfinal will be assured of a medal.

The 29-year-old Onder had moved up to middleweight in order to give his younger brother, Onur, the chance to fight in the welterweight (69 kg) division and the boxer’s display showed that though he had the speed, his punches against a natural middleweight in Vikas, simply lacked the power to cause his opponent any worry.

Vikas had mentioned that though he would be circumspect at the start, it would be essential to pounce at any opening after he had found his bearings. True to his word, after a cagey opening 45 seconds, Vikas created a neat angle on the inside of Onder’s right hand, opening his adversary for a moment and then used his straight right and uppercut to announce his intentions. He then continued in the same vein, allowing Onder to advance, make the first move and then take a toll while boxing off the counter.

“I knew I had to be a little more aggressive today. Onder is not a natural middleweight and I had to exploit that. The plan was to put him under pressure at the start and then allow him to try and force him to hit his way out of trouble. I am happy that I could manage to do that. I moved well, unsettled him with a few powerful punches early on and then it was a question of keeping my rhythm going. I eased off a little in the third round but I knew I had done enough,” he said.

Vikas’ quarterfinal opponent, the Uzbek Melikuziev, is one of the fastest rising stars on the amateur boxing circuit and someone who the Indian has seen from close. “He is a young, aggressive boxer who likes to hit hard, wants to come at you all the time. I fought him in the 2015 Asian Championship final and it was a close bout. I will have to be at my best if I want to do well against him. The momentum is with me. Everyone’s support is driving me on and I am going to give it my all,” he said.

The quarterfinal bout between Vikas and Melikuziev has been scheduled for Tuesday, 16th of August.