On August 7, when Bajrang Punia took the mat at the Makuhari Messe Hall for his bronze medal bout against his Kazakh opponent Daulet Niyazbekov, everything was at stake for the Indian wrestler's Georgian coach Shako Bentinidis.
Touted as one of the medal favourites, Bajrang, battling a knee injury, had lost his semifinal bout against Haji Aliyev of Azerbaijan 12-5 a day before. One more defeat would have ended Bajrang's hopes of finishing on the podium. The defeat would have also put a question mark on the coach's credibility. Despite the pressure, Shako was calm ahead of the bout. And he had a reason to stay assured of his ward's victory.
"Bajrang was fully focused and determined to win. That assured me a lot. I was relaxed as I knew he can overpower the Kazakh wrestler despite injury," the coach told this daily from the SAI centre in Sonepat.
Shako has been with the Haryana wrestler since 2018. He has watched Bajrang from close quarters in these three years and knows his strengths and weaknesses. He also knows that a focussed Bajrang is almost invincible.
"The first two bouts were tough but Bajrang managed to win them. We decided not to speak on injury to anyone as that would have become a big issue back in India," added Shako.
After taking 8-0 lead, the 27-year-old Haryana wrestler took it easy in the final 30 seconds. It was the coach who asked him to do so.
"In the last 30 or 40 seconds after taking the lead, I asked him to go slow. He was injured and we didn't want to take a risk. Besides, you have to respect your opponent as well," he said.
The wrestler received a grand welcome on his arrival in the country. The coach also witnessed the frenzy and chaos that accompanied the wrestler wherever he went. Exhausted after the prolonged celebrations, he wanted to rest before thinking about his future association with Bajrang.
"The contract was until the Tokyo Olympics. The Wrestling Federation of India will take a call in this regard soon. I would like to work with Bajrang for the next Olympic cycle but it all depends on the federation and the wrestler. But before resuming my duties, if my contract is extended, I would love to have a month-long break," Shako signed off.