Magnificent Mary Kom remained on course to her fifth gold medal at the Asian Boxing Championship as she advanced to the final of the event. The 35-year-old defeat Japan’s Tsubasa Komura in a unanimous 5-0 verdict to book her place in the final for the fifth time in her six appearances at the tournament.

The Rajya Sabha MP returned to preferred weight 48 kg after five years of competing in 51kg, which was made an Olympic category in 2012. Should she go on to win the final, the Indian would be winning her first gold Asian gold medal in the 48kg category.

 The Japanese boxer seemed too wary to go near the Indian, who had to quite literally lunge at Komura for her right hooks to connect. Mary Kom's patience with Komura's tactics ran out in the second round and she increased the pace and ferocity of her own attacks to unsettle the Japanese. The shell guard to stave off Komura's feeble right straights ensured that the Manipuri hardly took any blow in what turned out to be a lopsided contest.