BN Polo and DS Polo carved out contrasting victories in the Century Ventures National Open Polo Championship for Quaid-e-Azam Gold Cup 2023 matches played here at the Lahore Polo Club on Wednesday.
Elena Venot shines in BN Polo impressive victory
Sensational female foreign player Elena Venot excelled in BN Polo’s tremendous 9-5 triumph over FG Polo in the first match of the day.
Elena Venot, who is the only female player, representing BN Polo in the tournament, put up a brilliant show throughout the match and with his excellent polo skills and techniques, she succeeded in firing in four fabulous goals. Hamza Mawaz Khan also exhibited his prowess during the match and hammered an impressive hat-trick while Tito Ruiz Guinazu banged in a brace. For FG Polo, Juan Gustavo Ambroggio and Ramiro Zavaleta contributed with a brilliant brace each while Mian Abbas Mukhtar converted one goal.
FG Polo started the five-chukker match well and converted two goals against one by BN Polo to take a slight 2-1 lead in the first chukker. BN Polo made a strong comeback in the second chukker by thrashing in three back-to-back goals against one by FG Polo to earn a 4-3 lead. BN Polo then slammed in the only goal of the third chukker to enhance their lead to 5-3.
The fourth chukker was evenly poised as both the teams converted two goals each, with BN Polo still enjoying a 7-5 lead. The fifth and last chukker saw the dominance of BN Polo, who pumped in two back-to-back goals to win the match by 9-5.
Hissam, Gurrero heroics help DS Polo beat HN Polo 7-6
High-flying Hissam Ali Hyder and dazzling Javier Gurrero guided DS Polo to a narrow 7-6 victory over HN Polo in the second match of the day.
Both Hissam and Gurrero did magic with mallets and polo ponies and contributed with a hat-trick each for the winning side while Bilal Haye converted one goal for DS Polo. On the other hand, Raja Mikail Sami also played well and thrashed in three goals while Santiago Loza struck a brace and Haider Naseem scored one goal for HN Polo.
DS Polo converted the first goal of the match to take a 1-0 lead, which couldn’t last long as HN Polo also fired in a field goal to level the score at 1-1 just before the end of the first chukker. DS Polo then dominated the second chukker by thrashing in two back-to-back goals to take a 3-1 lead. The third chukker was evenly poised as both the sides banging in a brace each, with DS Polo still having a 5-3 lead.
HN Polo made a tremendous comeback in the fourth chukker as they hammered a hat-trick to gain a 6-3 lead, which couldn’t last long as DS Polo smashed in an equalizer just before the end of the fourth chukker. The fifth and decisive chukker saw both the teams trying to convert the match-winning goals but after a tough fight, Ds Polo succeeded in smashing the match-winner, thus winning the encounter by 7-6.
Two matches tomorrow (Thursday)
Tomorrow (Thursday), two matches will be played. In the first match of the day at 1:30 PM, Master Paints/Newage Cables will take on Diamond Paints, while Remounts will face Master Paints at 3:30 PM.
MATCHES SUMMARY
MATCH#3: BN POLO 9-5 FG POLO
BN POLO: Elena Venot 4, Hamza Mawaz Khan 3, Tito Ruiz Guinazu 2. Total: 9
FG POLO: Juan Gustavo Ambroggio 2, Ramiro Zavaleta 2, Mian Abbas Mukhtar 1. Total: 5
Umpires: John Fisher & Chris Hyde.
MATCH#4: DS POLO 7-6 HN POLO
DS POLO: Hissam Ali Hyder 3, Javier Gurrero 3, Bilal Haye 1. Total: 7
HN POLO: Raja Mikail Sami 3, Santiago Loza 2, Haider Naseem 1. Total: 6
Umpires: John Fisher & Chris Hyde.