Aman Sehrawat is a man on a mission in Paris: to keep alive Indian wrestling's medalling streak at the Olympics. Fighting in the 57kg category (his idol Ravi Dahiya's), he was looking to emulate Ravi's silver.
Aman was clear about what he wanted to do from the off in the first round: attack. Up first was Macedonia's Vladimir Egorov, a gold medallist at the 2022 European Championships. Aman gave him a minute to settle down and used his long levers to execute a takedown as Egorov was put on the activity clock. Aman struck with another swooping takedown and got a step-out point as well as a passivity point which handed him a 6-0 lead at the interval.
He had barely broken a sweat. He calmly sipped on water as he got his arms massaged at the break, while the Macedonian camp discussed the way back into the contest. Their plans materialized to nothing, however, as Aman was in no mood to indulge. Within a minute of the second period, Aman had two more takedowns and the bout to his name.
He was back on the mat within the hour and he had a familiar opponent across him: Zelimkhan Abakarov of Albania. The last time the two met, the Russian-born Albanian had trapped Aman in a leg-lace and rolled him around five times. It's the most embarrassing way to lose a bout - you're just there, feet trapped, with nowhere to go as your opponent rolls you on the mat like a rag doll.
That defeat stung Aman. Amends had to be made. 124 seconds is all Aman needed. He scored off a takedown to set the pace and did to Abakarov what he had done to him last year: roll him around the mat.
Aman ���� said it's better to get the tech with a leg lace than be tech'd with a leg lace. ����️ #roadtoparis2024 | #wrestleparis | #wrestlingparis | #PathtoParis | #wrestling | #paris2024 pic.twitter.com/QxWtu6x77N
- United World Wrestling (@wrestling) August 8, 2024
Aman used his long levers to inflict a single-leg takedown and then grabbed onto Abakarov's ankles to leg lace him forward thrice and a reverse leg lace closed out the contest. Not that it was very competitive. It was Aman's second win via technical superiority. Aman, though, hardly looked impressed. He got up and walked to the centre of the mat like nothing had happened, while Abakarov sat there stunned.
It was an exhibition of attacking wrestling. Aman showed just why he is considered among the best wrestlers in the men's 57kg. And he will have to prove himself once again later this evening when he takes on the top seed in Rei Higuchi. The Japanese wrestler won silver at the 2016 Olympics and a silver at the 2023 Worlds. Higuchi convincingly beat him at the Hungary Ranking Series in June.
Follow that match live right here at 9:45 PM
Aman goes into the bout as the underdog, but as the writing in his room says, "If it was easy, everyone would do it."