Across the line of akharas in external Delhi and Haryana, Ravi Dahiya’s “jigar” (boldness) is the stuff of legends. As a feature of their person building measure, youthful grapplers are recounted anecdotes about the one who can be halted exclusively by the clock; whose constant assaults drain the energy out of his adversaries; and, whose capacity to resurrect can put even Undertaker to disgrace.
Dahiya is only 23. However, around here, he is a man with numerous fantasies.
On Wednesday, inside a super show corridor right external Tokyo, far eliminated from the residue bowls of Haryana, Dahiya added to his legend. The grappler from Nahari, close to Haryana’s Sonepat, guaranteed India’s fourth decoration in Tokyo, a wrestling award at the fourth progressive Olympics, and a first last debut in the game since Sushil Kumar battled for gold in London in 2012.
Down 9-2 with under two minutes to be played in the elimination round of the 57kg weight class, Dahiya likewise prearranged a turnaround that will go down as one of the incomparable Olympic minutes in wrestling.
His rival, the wily Kazakh Nurislam Sanayev, had utilized the “standard terre” position — where Dahiya had his hands and knees to the ground with Sanayev hooking him from the back — to rush to an apparently impossible important lead.
In an Olympic elimination round, it is uncommon for a grappler to conquer such a deficiency. In any case, Dahiya remained quiet in spite of Sanayev, a double cross world medallist and ruling Asian hero, enjoying some gamesmanship, including staying his teeth into Dahiya’s lower arm. The Indian grasped the Kazakh’s left leg and turned him over the mat before at last sticking him in perhaps the most dazzling takedowns these Games have so far seen.
At the point when the ref halted the session, Sanayev lay level on his back, squirming miserably, face covered in his grasp as Dahiya approaching over him with a latent forceful appearanc and a siphoned right clench hand. This was the picture of a grappler at the pinnacle of his forces, which has impelled him to an Olympic last, to be hung on Thursday, in his lady appearance — an accomplishment no Indian grappler has accomplished previously.
Two additional Indian grapplers are in conflict for a decoration on Thursday — in ladies’ 57kg weight class, Anshu Malik has an opportunity to win a bronze alongside Deepak Punia in the men’s 86 kg classification. Malik should go through the repechage rounds and Punia is one win away from the platform.
The spotlight will solidly stay on Dahiya, in any case. Just Zaur Uguev remains among him and a gold decoration. The chances may be stacked against Dahiya when he takes on the powerful Russian, yet for somebody who has an invulnerable standing of being Indian wrestling’s “improbable man”, nothing appears inaccessible.
Dahiya, who comes from a wrestling family, has been tutored by double cross Olympic medallist Sushil Kumar at Delhi’s Chhatrasal foundation. There, he remained in a similar room which was once home to London Games bronze victor Yogeshwar Dutt. As anyone might expect, Dahiya fostered Sushil’s speed and Yogeshwar’s solidarity.
As a long time moved by, nonetheless, he fashioned different properties, killing notorieties and gatecrashing into competitions he wasn’t relied upon to.
Like arriving at the Olympic last. He began the day by crushing Colombia’s Oscar Eduardo Tigreros 13-2 and continued to destroy Bulgaria’s Georgi Vangelov 14-4. What’s more, his takedown of Sanayev in the elimination round was Dahiya doing Dahiya things.
That is the way he won his first significant worldwide award in 2015, a silver at the world junior title. That is the manner by which he crushed a portion of India’s best 57kg grapplers — a packed weight classification overflowing with top grapplers from Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra – to get chosen for the 2019 senior World Championship. What’s more, that was the way, at that occasion, he secured his share for the Tokyo Olympics.
At the 2019 Worlds, a capability occasion, India’s projection was to get back with two Olympic amounts yet Few, truth be told, had allowed the youngster an opportunity. Everyone’s attention was on Vinesh Phogat in ladies’ 53kg and Bajrang Punia all things considered.
An untouchable in the weight classification in those days, Dahiya won the majority of his sessions by specialized predominance, as he did on Wednesday. His walk at the time was ended by double cross best on the planet Uguev. Dahiya gets an opportunity to dole out retributions when he ventures onto the mat for the greatest episode of his short profession.
Notwithstanding what occurs straightaway, the tales of Dahiya’s “jigar” will currently be told past the akharas – and become a piece of Olympic legends.