TEAM GB boxing starlet Rosie Eccles had her Tokyo 2020 dream shattered on Sunday night.
The Welsh 69kg ace came up short against Russian veteran and 4th seed Saadat Dalgatova.
Rosie Eccles saw her Tokyo 2020 hopes shattered by Saadat DalgatovaCredit: PA:Press Association
The 23-year-old made a fine start to the CopperBox bout, using her height and reach advantages to score from distance.
But the 31-year-old Soviet slugger dragged her into a dog fight and a split 4-1 decision broke the Brit’s heart.
The crushed hero said: ““It wasn’t a nice fight to be in.
“I pride myself on getting my tactics right but maybe I was a little too eager against someone who wants to get in there and tie you up”
The former Deliveroo cyclist looked like serving up a perfect opening round, scoring with a string of crisp straight shots that stumpier Dalgatova could not live with.
But, in the second half of the session, Eccles engaged far too much and the experienced Russian managed to catch her with a handful of short shots.
In the second round, when the former cleaner listened to her corner’s advice and stuck to straight shots, she wiped the floor with Dalgatova.
But too many times her bravery took her into dangerous pockets where she was tagged.
After more scrappy exchanges in the third, Dalgatova needed a break, with a minute of the fight left, to fix her headguard.
But she lost all her momentum in the reshuffle and Eccles scored with a handful of power punches.
But the late flourish was not enough to save the flame-haired fighter whose burning Olympic dream was extinguished by the judges.
Mike Tyson speaks about his love of pigeons
Source: Boxing - thesun.co.uk
