He says; “I stared death in the eyes. I stood with my fists clenched, ready to punch like a boxer. I told myself one of us had to die.”

These are the heroic words of Ndumiso Mona who battled with a stray leopard that allegedly escaped from the Kruger National Park (KNP), South Africa.

Standing on the stope of his partially built home in the village of Matsulu in the Mbombela Local Municipality in Mpumalanga, the young man dressed in work overalls, grey socks and sandals recounted his ordeal that played out mid-morning on 21 July.

“I was hanging out outside a local shop with friends when we heard about a stray leopard roaming near my home. My instincts told me to run home. I was worried about my two siblings, who were at primary school,” he said while clinching his fists like a boxer.

“I ran and passed my home… when I saw it. I turned around, and it growled behind my back. I turned again. We stared at each other’s eyes. We both stood for about two minutes facing each other,” said the 23-year-old.