Finding openings and acting on them

[Bjjexpertise@be]

I picked up standup (mainly boxing) a little while ago and improved a lot since then. I've worked hard one perfecting punching technique and got it down to a tee but one thing keeps bothering me. When sparring, I have trouble finding openings for me to strike. I have an extremely short reach and I tend to have to use quick jabs and foot work to get myself into attacking range. The problem for me seems to be that I can't seem to find openings to attack. I go in, throw jabs and crosses but they tend to get stuffed and/or I get countered after throwing them. So what should I be looking for and how should I set up my strikes to actually land? Sorry if that seems pretty general.

[Bunji]

Work on your dodging, parrying and shuffles. Tire them out. The best thing to do having a short reach must mean your a short fighter. I always found the best thing to do in that situation was to build up momentum. Tire them out by parrying a lot and staying keen on your feet. When they let their guard down for just a second dive into body shots. Try and get a few powerful hooks between the top of the abs and just below the centre of their ribs. Remember, if a man cant breathe, he cant fight.