<p>A swollen face, a ligament injury in the left hand and a terribly groggy throat courtesy a bout of flu — Vijender Singh fought through all this to get a near-perfect birthday present for his son — a Commonwealth Games silver medal.<br /><br /></p>.<p>The former middleweight world number one lost to England’s Antony Fowler in the final on Saturday night to settle for his second silver medal in the Commonwealth Games. <br /><br />“I sustained an injury very soon into the bout. It is a ligament injury in the left hand. It hampered me immensely and allowed him to get the upperhand but I feel I still managed to put up a decent fight in the last round,” the 28-year-old told PTI.<br /><br />“Trust me, the pain is quite a lot to take when you are constantly getting hit. The injury made me a little conscious also and that affected my overall plan. This morning, I woke up with a swollen face and my left hand is hurting badly,” he said. That’s not all, the former Olympic and World Championships bronze-medallist was also down with flu since the quarterfinal stage of the Games.<br /><br />“I was taking a paracetamol pill before every bout. But that is no excuse, I lost and that’s a disappointing fact but I am happy that I fought well despite not being physically 100 per cent,” said the strapping six-footer.<br /><br />“It is my son’s birthday tomorrow, so this medal is for him. It’s his birthday present. A gold would have been better but even this silver, I dedicate it to him. He is my world,” added the boxer.<br /><br />As for the injury that he has sustained, Vijender said he would consult doctors before taking a call on whether to give the September Asian Games a shot. Vijender is the defending gold-medallist at the event. “Let’s see, I can’t say right now whether I would participate or give it a miss. It will depend on what the doctors tell me. If my fitness is not upto it, I will not put myself at risk by pushing too hard,” he said.</p>
<p>A swollen face, a ligament injury in the left hand and a terribly groggy throat courtesy a bout of flu — Vijender Singh fought through all this to get a near-perfect birthday present for his son — a Commonwealth Games silver medal.<br /><br /></p>.<p>The former middleweight world number one lost to England’s Antony Fowler in the final on Saturday night to settle for his second silver medal in the Commonwealth Games. <br /><br />“I sustained an injury very soon into the bout. It is a ligament injury in the left hand. It hampered me immensely and allowed him to get the upperhand but I feel I still managed to put up a decent fight in the last round,” the 28-year-old told PTI.<br /><br />“Trust me, the pain is quite a lot to take when you are constantly getting hit. The injury made me a little conscious also and that affected my overall plan. This morning, I woke up with a swollen face and my left hand is hurting badly,” he said. That’s not all, the former Olympic and World Championships bronze-medallist was also down with flu since the quarterfinal stage of the Games.<br /><br />“I was taking a paracetamol pill before every bout. But that is no excuse, I lost and that’s a disappointing fact but I am happy that I fought well despite not being physically 100 per cent,” said the strapping six-footer.<br /><br />“It is my son’s birthday tomorrow, so this medal is for him. It’s his birthday present. A gold would have been better but even this silver, I dedicate it to him. He is my world,” added the boxer.<br /><br />As for the injury that he has sustained, Vijender said he would consult doctors before taking a call on whether to give the September Asian Games a shot. Vijender is the defending gold-medallist at the event. “Let’s see, I can’t say right now whether I would participate or give it a miss. It will depend on what the doctors tell me. If my fitness is not upto it, I will not put myself at risk by pushing too hard,” he said.</p>