China developed the sport of cricket fighting during the Song dynasty (960-1279 AD); the fight is a natural outgrowth of interaction between two males who are competing for territory. The brave and valiant warrior spirit of a cricket in battle captivated audiences - and the cricket's reputation as an intelligent and competitive insect with an added talent for making beautiful sounds grew.

Fighting was at first a sport for the upper class, as a means to display wealth. The lower class was attracted to the gambling element, though, and eventually the sport became aligned with slackers and societal problems. When the government prohibited the fights, the sport went underground. Only in recent years has the sport of cricket fighting again been officially allowed, and then only if no gambling is involved - or discovered.
 
A cricket fight in China is as ritualistic as a bullfight is in Spain - and there is equal respect for both of the creatures involved. As has been the tradition for centuries, two crickets are weighed and then matched up according to size, weight, and color. Both combatants are placed in a small fighting arena, with walls high and thick enough to prevent desertion. The cricket trainers stimulate their charges with a straw or a fine-haired brush, and then the insect warriors go at each other, antennae waving and jaws snapping.

Over the years, experts have outlined three main fighting styles: A cricket might stalk his enemy slowly, in a strategy of "creep like a tiger, fight like a snake." Another cricket might lie in wait, attacking only when its opponent chirps, in the "listen for sound, look for the enemy" technique. A great fighter will use the "charge like the wind, valiantly forging straight ahead" method of champions.