Yashodhara Raje Scindia hosts the final match of Maharaja Jiwaji Rao Scindia Gold Cup 2020 in Delhi

This is the last leg of the polo season in Delhi and the stands at Jaipur Polo Grounds (JPG) have been packed for every weekend match. One of the annual, big matches was held on Sunday at JPG and it was attended by not just the regulars at polo matches, but also politicians including Harsimrat Kaur Badal, Minister Of Food Processing, Kirron Kher and Supriya Sule. It was the final match of Maharaja Jiwaji Rao Scindia Gold Cup 2020 and was hosted by Yashodhara Raje Scindia.

Battling the rains: Untimely rains just a day before the final match gave sleepless night to organises, who kept their fingers crossed throughout the game. “As per weather forecast, it was supposed to rain till midnight on Saturday and we all kept praying to the rain gods that it shouldn’t play a spoilsport,” said Yashodhara, adding, “But this is not a situation that we haven’t handled before. No matter whenever we host the Scindia Cup, it always rains! It has become like a ritual now. Earlier, we used to get stressed and often, we have made last-minute arrangements to somehow make the field ready for the game. There were even times when we had to cancel or reschedule a match because of rains, so we have had every kind of experience by now.”

For the love of horses and polo
Over the years, Yashodhara has kept the tradition of hosting the polo match alive. She told us, “My father was a polo player and he had his own polo team. As a child, he taught me how to ride horses. He died when I was six. The tradition of riding and the love for horses have always been in the family. I started riding competitively and participating in the nationals. The passion continued when I went to America for 18 years and after I came back, I started helping in promoting polo. When we started, we had the then PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee ji attending it.”