What is the meaning and origin of ding–dong battle?

Remember the nursery rhyme we learnt in school.

Ding – dong bell: Pussy is in the well. Well the expression ding – dong refers to the sound that a bell makes. The back and forth motion of the knocker hitting a bell. When you day that two participants were involved in a ding – dong battle, what you mean is that they were involved in a long drawn out battle. The fight was intense and there were times when each participant seemed to have to upper hand in turns. In a ding – dong battle, it is often very difficult to predict who will emerge the winner, sometimes, the result is inconclusive.

Another expression which has more or less the same meaning is See – saw battle.

When you sit on the see – saw, you are up one moment, and down the other.

The fans were hoping for a ding – dong battle. They were disappointed when the guises thrashed them.