The Maharaja of Jaipur, Sawai Padmanabh Singh, had a dual role at Guards Polo Club on the first Indian Polo Day at Smith’s Lawn. His Highness presented the prizes in the 18-goal Indian Polo Challenge Shield in the morning. He then took to the field with his Jaipur Polo Team to win the iconic Jaipur Trophy. In this game the Maharaja’s team beat a Guards Polo squad 8-7 on The Queen’s Ground.
This day was the perfect platform to restore the Jaipur Trophy to the Club’s roster of tournaments after an 11-year gap. The Jaipur Trophy was first presented to the Club in 1968 by HH Maharaja Sawai Man Singh ll, the current Maharaja’s great grandfather. However this day also highlighted the many cultural ties between two great polo-playing nations, India and England. As His Highness said before the Indian Polo Day began: “This isn’t just about reviving a trophy, it’s about honouring a heritage and sharing it with the world.”
Fourteen teams had entered this year’s Indian Polo Challenge Shield contest – a competitive, high-goal contest. The final, featuring Jasmine Calvert Ansari’s White Crane Black and Andrew Dechet’s Ainsley Saddlery did not disappoint. Ainsley Saddlery were in control for all five chukkas but White Crane Black fought back hard in the second half to close the gap.
Andrew Dechet had to retire injured in the last chukka and his place was taken by Lorenzo Metro. This change in personnel could have unsettled the team a little but they maintained their advantage to win 11-9. Andrew Dechet was also able to limp to the presentation table to receive the Most Valuable Player prize from the Maharaja.
His team-mate Manuel Plaza did help him receive the mighty Shield, which dates back to the 1920s. In addition, Guillermo Caset – known to all as Sapo - had a strong game across all five chukkas for Ainsley Saddlery and was rewarded with the Polo Times Best Playing Pony prize for Sapo Athena. This home-bred eight-year-old was played by Sapo in the first and fifth chukkas.
The sub final, another close contest played later in the day, was a win for Romilla Arber’s Four Quarters Black. They beat Emlor 8-7 in extra time at Coworth Park. Zoe Jenkins, the General Manager of Coworth Park, presented these prizes.
The Maharaja then donned an iconic Jaipur Polo Team shirt to lead out his team to play in the revived Jaipur Trophy match. He was joined by Sujan Indian Tigers patron Jaisal Singh, experienced Indian professional Abihmanyu Pathak and Argentine professional Daniel Otamendi. The Maharajah led from the front, scoring goals and delivering superb passes to his team-mates like a professional. By half-time the Jaipur Polo Team were 5-3 ahead.
The Guards quartet – Vishwarup Bajaj, Dino Dhankhar, Kuldeep Singh Rathore, who was celebrating his birthday on this day, and Will Emerson - got themselves level (6-6) after the third, ensuring there was all to play for in the fourth chukka. Heavy rain joined the players at the start of this period but this did not deter them. Otamendi fired through a penalty to put Jaipur ahead only for Emerson to swap from defensive play to some great attacking form to fire a big hit to goal to level the scores again.
With time ticking down, the Maharaja took the ball up field and after a little melee His Highness was rewarded with a goal. Dhankhar, who had played for Guards Polo Club in Argentina last winter, was keen to push this game into extra time despite the weather, while team-mate Bajaj produced some good play that sadly went wide. However, when the final bell rang it was the Jaipur Polo Team who were in front.
The Maharaja’s younger brother, HH Maharaja Lakshraj Prakash of Sirmaur and Maharaja Narendra Singh presented the prizes. This included stunning replicas of the magnificent Jaipur Trophy to every player.
In addition to some outstanding polo, Guards Polo Club curated a celebration of Indian culture throughout the day. This included a fabulous display by award-winning dancer Geetha Sridhar. Post match all guests were treated to an amazing display from the Elite dhol drummers in the Clubhouse. These elements combined perfectly to remind us all about the remarkable cultural heritage, lifestyle and diplomacy between India and the UK.
Ainsley Saddlery: Andrew Dechet/Lorenzo Metro (1); Tomas Willans (4); Manuel Plaza (5); Guillermo Caset (8). White Crane Black: Jasmine Calvert Ansari (0); James Beim (6); Mackenzie Weisz (6); Lorenzo Chavanne (6).
Jaipur Polo Team: Jaisal Singh (1); Abhimanyu Pathak (3); Daniel Otamendi (3); HH The Maharaja of Jaipur (3). Guards Polo Club: Vishwarupe Bajaj (1); Dino Dhankhar (0); Kuldeep Singh Rathore (3); Will Emerson (5).
Four Quarters Black: Romilla Arber (0); Luca Criado (6); Felipe Dabas (6); James Harper (6). Emlor Black: Louis Heard (2); Ed Banner Eve (5); Santiago Araya (4); Juan Gris Zavaleta (7).
Images copyright Sam Churchill
