India's Some Of The Best Polo Players Come Down To Battle

 

 

 

On the sunny morning of Thursday, 6th February 2020, the AEC Ground, New Delhi was all prepped up for the matches of the day. Setting up the watch, levelling the ground, and getting the camp houses ready, the day vibed for a great match ahead.

 

Match 1

 

With Rajnigandha Achievers and Horse & Wagon coming in for the first match of the day, it was prophet to be a close match.

 

 

 

 

Rajnigandha Achievers	Horse & Wagon
Aryaman Dahiya -2	Raghav Rao Yadav 1
Kuldeep Singh Rathore +2	Salim Azmi 3
Daniel Otamendi +5	Basheer Ali 4
Padmanabh Singh +3	Buchi Prakash 0

 

 

 

 

 

The match started off in full swing. With a number of taps and turns, the competition got on speed. Padmanabh Singh, the Maharaja of Jaipur, dashed his ball twice towards the goal post, but in a slight deflection lost the chances. Till the first half of the chukker, the scoreboard rested at nil. Soon after the polo players changed their ponies and made a comeback, Daniel Otamendi in a 60 yard penalty managed to grab the first goal of the match in favor of Rajnigandha Achievers.

 

 

 

Chukker 1
Rajnigandha Achievers 1
Vs
Horse & Wagon 0

 

 

 

 

 

The second began to have both the teams as competitive as it can get. While polo players from both the teams were still managing the pace, Basheer Ali, in no time, got the first goal for his team Horse & Wagon. Moving ahead in the game, team Rajnigandha Achievers, once again was awarded with a penalty shot. Taking the chance, Daniel Otamendi in a 30 yard penalty shot grabbed the second goal. The brilliance of the game was seen when, Horse & Wagon team was about to score their second goal but Padmanabh Singh, the Maharaja of Jaipur got the ball out of the goal post just at the last second. Daniel Otamendi understanding the urgency hit the ball on the other end of the ground. Although, in no time, Horse & Wagon were given a 40 yard penalty which Basheer Ali took as an opportunity and converted into the second goal for the team.

 

 

Chukker 2
Rajnigandha Achievers 2
Vs
Horse & Wagon 2

 

 

 

 

The third chukker was going to be a tie breaker. With the pressure of performance building on all the polo players, they got into the ground for the action of the chukker to begin. Taking the game forward was Padmanabh Singh, Maharaja of Jaipur, who grabbed the third goal for the team Rajnigandha Achievers. But the lead was short lived as Basheer Ali from the middle of the ground, hit a ball in full force to grab the third goal for his team Horse & Wagon. In the shades of happiness, Basheer Ali shouted in joy, "Dale, Dale!"

 

 

Chukker 3
Rajnigandha Achievers 3
Vs
Horse & Wagon 3

 

 

 

 

 

Opening up the chukker was Rajnigandha Achievers. Daniel Otamendi hit the ball and passed it to Padmanabh Singh, the Maharaja of Jaipur. Taking the ball his control, he in a hit shot bracketed the fourth goal for the team Rajnigandha Achievers. In no time, Kuldeep Singh Rathore had the fifth goal in favor of the team. With this, Rajnigandha Achievers maintained a lead with two goals ahead of Horse & Wagon at 5 goals to 3. The equalizer looked like, had finally come to an end. But the opponent team, Horse & Wagon was not going to go easy at this. In a conjugated pattern the team juggled for the fourth goal with Basheer Ali grabbing it. Soon after this, the umpire whistled for half chukker. The last 3minutes and 21 seconds were going to be crucial for all the polo players. Coming back, Daniel Otamendi grabbed the sixth goal for the team.

 

 

Chukker 4
Rajnigandha Achievers 6
Vs
Horse & Wagon 4

 

 

 

 

Match 2

 

After Rajnigandha Achievers won the first match of the day and qualified for the semi finals, it was time for the second match where Aravali Polo and ASC Col Girdhari Singh came against each other

 

 

 

 

Aravali Polo	ASC Col Girdhari Singh
Shaurya Vikram -1	Sep Ravinder Mang 0
Anirudh Mawaji 0	Naveen Singh +2
Angad Kalaan +3	Lt Col Vishal Chauhan +4
Manuel F Llorente +6	Col GS Pandher, SM +2

 

 

 

 

 

The second match started off with Angad Kalaan taking the lead in no time. He took a solo run and bracketed the first goal of the match for his team Aravali Polo. Taking the game ahead was a 40 yard penalty shot which Naveen Singh took for his team ASC Col Girdhari Singh Memorial. As the game galloped, the next move again resulted in a penalty shot. This time, it was a 30 yard penalty shot in favor of ASC Col Girdhari Singh. It was once again taken by Naveen Singh. With this, the team had a lead with 2 goals against 1 of Aravali Polo.

 

 

 

Chukker 1
Aravali Polo 1
Vs
ASC Col Girdhari Singh Memorial 2

 

 

 

 

 

The second chukker had fate similar to that of the first match. Grabbing the pace, Angad Kalaan in a 40 yard penalty grabbed the second goal for his team. In no time, he once again in a hustle, had the third goal in for Aravali Polo. It was now Aravali Polo now who was in the lead. Making a comeback, team ASC Col Girdhari Singh Memorial had the buckles tight and in a swift smart move, Lt Col Vishal Chauhan grabbed the third goal for his team. Complementing this move was Naveen Singh, who in a solo run had the fourth goal for the team.

 

 

Chukker 2
Aravali Polo 3
Vs
ASC Col Girdhari Singh Memorial 4

 

 

 

 

The third chukker remained slow in terms of getting the goals. But as soon as the opportunity built, Manuel F Llorente right from the middle of the ground grabbed a blazing goal for Aravali Polo with which the scoreboard once again came to equal. It looked as if the trajectory of the first and the second polo match was almost patterned on similar lines. Coming into play once again, Naveen Singh grabbed the fifth goal for ASC Col Girdhari Singh Memorial. But the lead was broken quickly as Manuel F Llorente in a long hit shot had the fifth goal in for Aravali Polo. The chukker ended at a similar score

 

 

Chukker 3
Aravali Polo 5
Vs
ASC Col Girdhari Singh Memorial 5

 

 

 

 

 

The last chukker of the match was sure to build pressure over Polo players. With the scoreboard carrying a similar score for both the teams, it was going to be either a tie breaker or a welcoming way for an extra chukker. And so it did. The game went into an extra chukker.

 

 

Chukker 4
Aravali Polo 5
Vs
ASC Col Girdhari Singh Memorial 5

 

 

 

 

The golden goal was grabbed by Sep Ravindra Mang with which team ASC Col Girdhari Singh Memorial entered the semi finals.

 

 

Chukker 5
Aravali Polo 5
Vs
ASC Col Girdhari Singh Memorial 6

 

 

 

 

Match 3

 

After two extremely competitive matches, the day moved ahead for the third match that was scheduled between Indian Navy and Jindal Panther. Team India Navy entered with an advantage of 4 goals.

 

 

 

 

Jindal Panther	Indian Navy
Naveen Jindal 0	Maj Anant Rajpurohit 0
Akshai Malik 0	Lt CDR K Rathee -2
Phil Seller +2	Cdr Akhil Sirohi 2
Simran Shergill +6	Capt AP Singh 2

 

 

 

 

 

The match opened up with and in no time, Jindal Panther were awarded a 30 yard penalty which was taken by Naveen Jindal. In an easy hit, he grabbed the first goal. In no time, the Arjuna Awardee and ace polo player of Jindal Panther, Simran Singh Shergill grabbed the second goal for the team. Moving with the trajectory, Phil Seller had the third goal bracketed for Jindal Panther. Equalizing the score was Simran Singh Shergill from his team Jindal Panther. At this, the match stood at 4 goals each. Moving ahead, Phil Seller grabbed an easy goal. This was complemented by Arjuna Awardee Simran Singh Shergill who bracketed the sixth goal.

 

 

 

Chukker 1
Jindal Panther 6
Vs
Indian Navy 4

 

 

 

 

 

The second chukker had Indian Navy in action. With Cdr Akhil Sirohi grabbing the first goal for his team, it marked five goals for Indian Navy. This was followed by Simran Singh Shergill taking the lead. Jindal Panther now had a total of 7 goals in their bracket. Making a comeback was Maj Anant Rajpurohit. He grabbed the second goal for his team. Complementing his moves was Cdr Akhil Sirohi. He grabbed the third goal for his team. At this, Phil Seller made the eighth goal. Coming up next was Capt AP Singh who had the fourth goal for the team.

 

 

Chukker 2
Jindal Panther 8
Vs
Indian Navy 8

 

 

 

 

Getting the pace of the game was Cdr Akhil Sirohi. This marked the ninth goal of Indian Navy against 8 of team Jindal Panther. Phil Seller at this grabbed the ninth goal for his team.

 

 

Chukker 3
Jindal Panther 9
Vs
Indian Navy 9

 

 

 

 

The last chukker like the above two matches of the day was going to be tie breaker. At this, Arjuna Awardee, Simran Singh Shergill, bracketed the tenth goal for his team Jindal Panther. Moving ahead, he once again grabbed a goal, which marked the eleventh goal for his team. Once again, the ace polo player had in his control the twelfth goal for his team Jindal Panther.

 

 

 

Chukker 4
Jindal Panther 12
Vs
Indian Navy 9

 

 

 

 

Match 4

 

The last match of the day had El Dragon and Cavalry- APRC

 

 

 

 

El Dragon	Cavalry - APRC
Siddhant Singh -2	Maj Apurva Dabhade -1
Dhananjay Singh +1	Maj Aman Singh +1
Abhimanyu Pathak +5	Gaurav Sahgal +3
Siddhant Sharma +4	Col Ravi Rathore, VSM +5

 

 

 

 

 

The last match of the day had the game going with Siddhant Sharma bracketing the first goal of the match. This was quickly equalled by Col Ravi Rathore who grabbed the first goal for his team Cavalry - APRC. Getting along with the speed of the game, Dhruvpal Godara in a nice and clean shot had the second goal for the team Cavalry - APRC.

 

 

 

Chukker 1
El Dragon 1
Vs
Cavalry - APRC 2

 

 

 

 

The second chukker started off with Abhimanyu Pathak taking the second goal for the team El Dragon. Moving ahead, it was Siddhant Sharma who bracketed the third goal.

 

 

Chukker 2
El Dragon 3
Vs
Cavalry - APRC 2

 

 

 

 

 

Into the third chukker, it was Dhruvpal Godara on strike who managed to get the third goal for the team.

 

 

Chukker 3
El Dragon 3
Vs
Cavalry - APRC 3

 

 

 

 

 

Moving ahead with the game, Abhimanyu Pathak had the fourth goal for the team. This was followed by Siddhant Sharma grabbing the next goal for team El Dragon. Now the team maintained a lead by 2 goals with a score of 5 goals to 3. At this in a 40 yard penalty, Dhruvpal Godara grabbed the fourth goal. This was followed by yet another goal by Dhruvpal and the scoreboard again rested at a tie. In the last eight seconds the teams raced to the end and in the very last second of the match Siddhant Sharma grabbed the sixth goal and the victory was named for El Dragon.

 

 

Chukker 4
El Dragon 6
Vs
Cavalry - APRC 5

 

 

Last Updated: 20th September 2022