Now Polo to the rescue of India, Pakistan

Lahore, Apr 18 (UNI) With the disastrous showing of both Pakistan and India this World Cup, now it seems cricket has taken a backseat to Polo towards building better relations between the arch rivals.

The manager of the visiting Indian polo team from Jaipur club, Col (retd) Kuldeep Singh Garcha said an exchange of regular polo ties will help in improving relations between India and Pakistan.

''Polo is bringing the people of both countries closer as teams from both sides are visiting each other on a regular basis and this practice should go on not only to promote this historic game but also to foster relations,'' he said.

''In recent years lots of improvement have been made in bettering relations due to interaction in sporting events; a major role was played by cricket and now polo has become an effective medium for the same cause,'' the Jaipur club official told 'The News' at the Lahore Polo club (LPC).

The Indian team comprises Ransher Singh Rathore, Abhimanyu Pathak and Bhupender Singh Rathroe.

President LPC, Abdul Qadir Mamdot said the series would help in giving exposure to the young players of both the teams helping them to blend with the senior players adding that India and Pakistan should jointly bid for staging the world cup of polo as both countries had successfully organised the play-offs for the world cup qualifiers in the past.

The first match which was played yesterday while the second match will be played tomorrow followed by the third and final on April 21.

The Indian team has extended an invitation to return a tour in October.

UNI