Boxer Deepak Kumar will not forget his first tournament after a gloomy 2020 in a hurry. In the semi-finals of the Strandja Memorial tourney in Sofia, Bulgaria, last month he upstaged the reigning Olympic and world champion Shakhobiddin Zoirov of Uzbekistan 4-1.

Though he went on to lose narrowly in the flyweight (52kg) final to two-time European silver medallist Daniel Asenov and finished with silver, he received many an accolade for his show.

“I consider defeating Zoirov a great achievement. To down the Olympic and world champion is no mean feat. So there was a sense of immense satisfaction,” Deepak told The Telegraph.

“But then, I believe good things always happen to a good sportsman…more so when the he gives his hundred per cent, as I did.”

But how did the pugilist mentally prepare for the fact that that he was facing an opponent who was the sure favourite?

“I took it as just another bout. I’d decided to go in and play my regular game. I was aware that if I put too much pressure on myself prior to the bout, no way would I be able to give my best. So that’s what I did and the results are there for all to see.”

The past year has been tough for him, as for everyone else.

“The first phase was bad when we were locked up at home. I would train on the terrace of my house and carried on thus till the camp started, in July, in Patiala. From thereon things started getting better”

So what prompted him to take to boxing?

“This was entirely due to the inspiration of my chachaji (Ravinder Kumar). He had knowledge of the game and could guide me well. He also spelt out the benefits of the game to me. He wanted to be a boxer himself but couldn’t because he had none to guide him. So, despite the disapproval of my parents, I turned to the game in 2008,” said the boxer who hails from Haryana’s Hisar.

Thereafter there was no stopping him. By 2018 he was the national champion and went on to win the Asian Championship silver in 2019.

So, what are his next targets?

“As of now, I’m looking ahead to the Asian Championships and World Championships which come up after the Olympics. But my real target is the 2024 Olympics,” said Deepak.

His preferred weight category being 52 kg, does that put him in competition with world No. 1 Amit Panghal who has already sealed a Tokyo berth?

The answer is an emphatic no. “I have enough confidence in myself and I know that in time, I will create my own space,” asserted Deepak, a Naib Subedar in the Indian Army.

After a short break at home following the Bulgaria sojourn, Deepak has returned to the camp in Patiala.

He will work on his shortcomings and is determined to go many a mile and reach many a milestone in the years ahead.