After this Friday’s action, there were only two teams left in the competition, with the penultimate round of matches before the season finale deciding who would battle it out for the coveted WSB Team trophy. Dynamo Moscow hosted Astana Arlans, looking to overturn a slender 3:2 deficit, and Baku Fires faced with the impossible against the Dolce & Gabbana Milano Thunder, having lost 5:0 in the first leg.
Dynamo Moscow vs. Astana Arlans
It was the fourth and final instalment in the clash of the Eastern titans saga as Moscow reserved a hot reception for Astana in a winner takes all match at the Basket-Hall in the heart of the Russian capital. Delicately poised from the first leg, this was anyone’s match and with so much at stake, there were some nerves to settle.
Dynamo Moscow got off to a flyer as Anvar Yusunov ensured the Russian outfit drew level in the tie as the 25-year-old southpaw demonstrated just why he won a bronze medal at the AIBA World Boxing Championships Baku 2011, with an electrifying performance that delighted the home supporters. The Tajik was on fire, hungry for victory from the onset of the fight, unleashing several precise combination punches that Astana’s Rafikjon Sultunov just had no reply to. It was the perfect fight from Yusunov, who dominated proceedings from the centre of the ring throughout, never giving his rival a moment’s rest to take all rounds on all judges’ scorecards.
Buoyed by the performance of his teammate, top ranked Lightweight Adlan Abdurashidov kept up the intensity levels when he took to the ring, and with the boisterous crowd behind him, he furiously unleashed on last season’s best fighter in the division, Yerzhan Mussafirov, who could not find a reply to the unrelenting assaults of his opponent. Moscow’s Abdurashidov exemplified this spirit Dynamo has shown throughout this campaign, never allowing the man he faced to find a rhythm. Mussafirov was dethroned and replaced by his ambitious successor. WSB fans will be impatient now to see the 21-year-old Russian Abdurashidov in action during the Individual Championships on 9 June.
With Moscow now in the ascendancy and having taken the lead on aggregate, Middleweight Maxim Gazizov proved his pedigree by matching Astana’s WSB knock-out king Kanat Slam in the early stages. Gazizov was intelligent in his approach, using the jab to great effect to keep his rival at bay before working the body to great effect, taking the first two rounds. Slam, the poster boy of his team, was being urged by his corner to go all-out in order to stem the domination of the Moscow fighters. Positive in his approach, the 27-year-old Kazak took the third round with the brilliant use of the left hook. This was in vain as Gazizov stepped up a level in the fourth to take the round. Slam dominated the fifth but it was too little too late as Dynamo now had a two fight advantage.
5:3 down on aggregate, Astana now needed to find inspiration to get back into the match with nothing less than a victory needed to keep their chances of progression alive. Their weapon was Light Heavyweight Champion, Abdelhafid Benchabla. The 25-year-old Algerian is one of the most accomplished fighters in the competition and after three rounds against Dynamo’s Oleksandr Gvozdyk, it looked like the lightning-quick Astana Arlans orthodox was on track to get his team back in the match. The tall Ukrainian had other ideas; intent on keeping his unbeaten WSB record intact, the 24-year-old went on the attack, throwing everything he had in his locker as he stormed to victory by taking the last two rounds. Gvozdyk was now the hero as he ensured the overall victory for Dynamo Moscow.
With the Heavyweight bout now just a formality, a deflated Chouaib Bouloudinats took to the ring for Astana looking to salvage some pride for the visiting team. The Algerian could just not cope with the 22-year-old Russian Vitaly Kudukhov and after taking three counts in the first round, the fight was over within minutes as Dynamo Moscow recorded an emphatic 5:0 victory to progress to the final. The Russian outfit looked irrepressible and it will take a lot to stop them from taking that trophy in London.
Baku Fires vs. Dolce & Gabbana Milano Thunder
Having recorded such a comprehensive win in the first leg, all Milano needed from their visit to the Azeri capital was to win one of their fights against Baku Fires at the Olympic Sports Centre ‘Serdechi’ to ensure their progression to the WSB Team Final in London.
Unfortunately for the home team, rising star and AIBA World Boxing Championships Baku 2011 silver medallist Teymur Mammadov was forced to withdraw just hours before his Light Heavyweight fight which made it impossible for Baku Fires to draw level in the tie, assuring then the overall victory for Milano.
Following this news, Baku Fires then withdrew their 26-year-old Ukrainian Heavyweight Denys Poyatsyka, who had been struggling with an injury himself. The Italian outfit then regrettably followed suit as they did not want to aggravate the hand injury that Middleweight king Sergiy Derevyanchenko had been carrying for weeks, so the night only showcased two fights.
In the Bantamweight contest, Russian Magomed Kurbanov put in a clinic as he overwhelmed Milano’s Veaceslav Gojan from the first bell. It was an extremely controlled display by the 21-year-old Baku Fires orthodox fighter as he dictated proceedings from start to finish and he took every round to triumph in style. Kurbanov extended his season record to three wins no losses. Keep an eye out for him next season.
Isa Isayev is another product of the Azeri conveyor belt and at 21 years of age, this exciting southpaw seems to have the world at his feet. The Baku Fires Lightweight was sensational against his younger opponent, the Argentine Juan Javier Carrasco Herrera. Isayev was fast and furious as he hounded down his rival throughout the bout to take each round on all three judges’ scorecards.
So once again Baku Fires go out at the semi-final stages. They will now be fully focused on getting the best preparation for next season where they will be gunning for the title. On the other hand, Milano will be delighted to have made it to the showpiece final where their glitz and glamour will surely have many fans rooting for them to win it.
Do not miss the WSB Team Final on 2 May and the Individual Championships on 9 June, both at the ExCeL, London, at the heart of the Olympic City.
