With the sizzling summer of 2022 in the UK now a fading memory, polo fans may have to look elsewhere to follow the big action, as various tournaments take place in tropical and southern hemisphere climates.
The good news is there is much to maintain the interest, not least in Dubai, where the Monte Carlo team has just won the Capital Luxury Cup.
As Gulf News reports, the team secured a thrilling victory in the four-chukker final over Lan To Capital, avenging a loss to the home side earlier in the tournament.
The match saw Monte Carlo go 2-0 up in the first chukker before Mohammad Bin Drai pulled one back. The second chukker appeared to be set to finish goalless until Monte Carlo’s Rishi Bhansali scored on the stroke of half-time.
Mohammad Bin Drai brought his side back into the game with a 30-yard penalty in the third Chukker, before near namesake Rashid Bin Drai extended the Monte Carlo lead by the same method. A third for Mohammed Bin Drai kept the home side in the fight but Monte Carlo president Francesco Milrano made it 5-3 before the end of the third chukker.
Mohammad Bin Drai continued his one-man battle in the final chukker with a fourth goal, but the last word went to Rishi Banshali, who ensured Monte Carlo won the match 6-4.
The triumph marked a significant victory for Monte Carlo, a team that has had some glittering successes since its formation in 2012 but had been enduring a trophy drought in recent years, its last major victory coming in the Snow Polo World Cup in St Moritz, Switzerland, in 2018.
Monte Carlo’s first trophy came in the winter polo tournament in Cortina, Italy, in 2012, after which it won two trophies in 2013, four in 2014, five in 2015, six in 2016 and peaked with seven in 2017.
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