Last year Jorawar Singh, a well known wrestler of Agra, threw a challenge to the wrestlers of his district. The challenge was taken up by Fateh Singh.
A match was arranged between them on the Dussehra day.
The news of the match caused a stir in the town. The entry was by tickets. Thousands of people gathered to see the match. My friend Deena Nath and I also purchased tickets, as we entered the arena we saw it was full of spectators. Every inch of space was occupied. Many other wrestlers were present to see the match.
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At 4 p.m. two wrestlers jumped into the arena. They shook hands with each other. Jorawar was tall, heavy and well-built. He seemed to be full of energy.
Fateh Singh was thin but muscular. At first we thought that Fateh Singh was no match for Jorawar. Jorawar seemed to be the stronger of the two.
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The match began. The wrestlers came to grip. Jorawar gave a terrible push to Fateh Sigh and then wanted to pull him to the ground. But Fateh Singh stood the push well.
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Though he was smaller and probably weaker he proved to be the braver and cleverer of the two. Jorawar soon realised that it was not easy to give defeat to his opponent.
He, therefore, changed his tactics. Instead of depending upon his superior strength he began to make use of his clever tricks. In this way the match went on for about fifteen minutes.
The friends of the two wrestlers cheered them at every move. The crowd of spectators showed great sympathy for Fateh Singh, perhaps because of his being smaller of the two. Whenever Fateh Singh played a good trick or drove Jorawar into a difficult position the audience clapped and cheered loudly.
For some time it seemed as if the match would end in a draw. Both wrestlers seemed to be equally clever and strong. Both were perspiring and getting exhausted. But expectations proved false.
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We saw that Fateh Singh managed to catch hold of Jorawar’s waist from behind. He then pulled him with all his strength and with a violent jerk threw him on the ground.
Before Jorawar had time to get up or roll over his chest, Fateh Singh jumped on him and pinned him down his back on the ground.
Fateh Singh had defeated the Agra Champion. On all sides shouts of victory rose up into the air. Everybody was surprised but happy at the result of the match.
Jorawar left the arena with his head hung in sorrow. A mischievous man cried loudly ‘Pride hath a fall’. Fateh Singh on the other hand seemed very happy.
He took a round of the arena with his folded hands. His friends, being overjoyed on his unexpected victory, lifted him on their shoulders and warmly congratulated him on his feat.