Bengaluru's Alyssa Lampe thanks coach after stunning comeback win

US grappler Alyssa Lampe

The Bengaluru Yodhas recorded a comprehensive 6-1 victory in their first fixture of the inaugural Pro Wrestling League against the UP Warriors to start their campaign in the best way possible.

The side led by Narsingh Yadav brushed aside their opponents and according to their coach, they are already planning for the semifinal and final, such is the confidence in the team.

Most victories scored by the Yodhas were resounding one-sided affairs as the UP Warriors did not once look like coming back into the tie. All matches were exciting and showcased some high-quality wrestling, the best bout of the tie was most certainly the 48 kg Women’s Freestyle category, which was contested between Bengaluru’s American import Alyssa Lampe and UP’s Ukranian grappler Oleksandra Kohut, who won the gold medal at the 2010 World Championships.

The bout can be described best as a game of two halves as both wrestlers completely dominating one round each with Lampe edging out the win in the most dramatic of fashions. Lampe, who was the 2014 US Champion, came into the tie as the underdog and somehow managed to eke out a victory at the very last moment.

It was the Ukranian who was on top in the first round as she applied some serious pressure right from the very first second. She took a 0-2 lead on the minute mark and could have gone further ahead, if not for some stubborn defending by Lampe. She pushed hard and finally broke her opponent’s resistance with ten seconds left in the round to go 0-4 up.

The tide turned in the second round as it was Lampe who took the first points after the restart as she pressured Kohut into a bad position and halved the deficit to 2-4. She used this momentum to good effect and leveled the score at 4-4 with two minutes to go, with both wrestlers now realizing that any mistake could mean losing the game.

Both Lampe and Kohut grappled hard and repelled any advances by the other. With just ten seconds left, it seemed as if the Ukranian would be victorious as she gained a tight grip on her opponent.

However, Lampe showed great awareness by simply pushing Kohut out of the playing area using her strength and thus, gained a vital point which made it 5-4 and Bengaluru took a substantial 3-0 lead in the fixture.

Post-match, Lampe spoke about her bout and said that nervousness got the better of her in the first round, but she was always confident about fighting her way back. She explained the importance of her coach’s words at half-time, who asked her to remain focused and confident, and play her natural game.

These words turned out to be decisive as Lampe overturned the deficit as she expressed her delight at giving the fans some excitement.

The 27-year old also faced questions about her personal life and said that she is keeping her options open when it comes to choosing a life partner. She laughed when asked whether she had found anyone during her stay in India so far, and shook her head as she clarified that her primary focus was wrestling and helping her team win!