The 23-year-old, who represented the country at the London 2012 Olympic Games, was faced with the tough challenge of Colombia’s Juan Carlo Carrillo Palacio, as both men eyed a place in the quarter-finals.

Sangwan eventually emerged as the victory at the end of the three rounds, with two judges awarding him the contest 30-27, while the third official gave the Colombian the verdict by 29-28.

“Sumit boxed very intelligently, he tried to keep his opponent at long range and struck some brilliant straight punches to his body and face,” Indian national team coach Gurbax Singh Sandhu told the Press Trust of India.

“His opponent was stout and had a powerful swing which Sumit dodged beautifully with his footwork.

“It was all the more good to watch because Indians generally struggle against southpaw boxers.”

Sangwan will now face Mongolia’s Erdenebayar Sandagsuren in the quarter-finals, after he claimed a split decision victory over the United States’ Jonathan Esquivel.

The Mongolian was awarded the contest 29-28 on two of the judges’ scorecards to progress, while Esquivel had been given the bout by the same score by the other official, but was forced to bow out of the competition.

There was better fortune for his team-mate Gary Russell, who delivered an excellent performance in the men’s under 64kg light welterweight division.

He achieved a technical knock-out victory over Ethiopia’s Girmachew Bahiru Tadesse with seconds left of the first round of the tie to move into the last eight.

Russell will now face 2015 Oceania Confederation Boxing Championships gold medallist David Biddle, after he recorded a unanimous points victory over New Zealand’s Richard Hadlow.

Ireland’s Dean Gardiner reached the last eight of the men’s over 91kg super heavyweight competition, after being awarded a split decision verdict against Satish Kumar, with the contest having ended early following the Indian boxer receiving a cut.

Gardiner will face Ukraine’s Viktor Vykhryst for a place in the semi-finals, with his rival having eased to a unanimous points win over Bosnia and Herzegovina’s Das Simeunovic in his contest.

A total of 39 Olympic places are on offer during the tournament in Baku, which runs until June 25.

The top five boxers at flyweight, bantamweight, lightweight, light welterweight, welterweight, middleweight and light heavyweight will all earn Olympic berths.

In addition two spots are available at light heavyweight, with only the winners in Baku progressing at heavyweight and super heavyweight.