It is summer time now and the fields contesting in the events for horses in Class III and above are getting sparse on a regular basis. As witnessed in the recent past, higher class events find just 3-4 horses willing to be in the fray and the Rajpipla Trophy, a Class I race which featured Wednesday’s compact card of six races was no exception. It had just four contestants including two from trainer Dallas Todywalla’s yard – Irish Gold entrusted to A. Sandesh and It’s My Time partnered by Trevor Patel. Despite the small field, there was no clear cut favourite as far as the betting was concerned. On current form Irish Gold cornered majority support whilst the rest of the wagering being shared by Antony Raj-piloted Market King and It’s My Time . Market King exploited his early speed and called the shots till entering the final stretch where Irish Gold tackled him at the two-furlong marker. Sandesh scrubbed Irish Gold to hold the advantage as Trevor brought It’s My Time into contention. The former held a slender lead till It’s My Time challenged him in the last furlong and in the ensuing battle, both horses went stride for stride before Trevor got his mount to lunge at his rival. It’s My Time (Roderic O’Connor – Unforgettable You) nailed Irish Gold a few metres away from the wire and defeated him by just under a length. Market King failed to match strides with his younger rivals and ended third, two lengths behind but three-part of a length ahead of Son Of A Gun.
 
Later in the day, Trevor steered Lord And Master to victory in the Krasny Cup and justified the faith imposed in him by race-goers . Shazaan Shah’s decision to entrust Lord And Master in the hands of Trevor drew enough attention from punters to go out as the firm favourite. Fortunate Son, though running for the first time this season, showed no signs of rustiness and went to the front as usual with Art Collector and Lord And Master waiting to pounce upon the leader. However, Kishore Kadam spurred Fortunate Son as Lord And Master ranged alongside and both of them fought a pitched battle with the former refusing to cave in. Trevor, however, packed enough punch in his finishing effort astride Lord And Master (Multidimensional – Haedi) whose flared nostrils put paid to the hopes of Fortunate Son and helped him earn his corn bill. Golden Glow rallied late to be third while Eaton Square took the fourth place.

Pesi Shroff-schooled Mighty Sparrow made amends for his narrow defeat at the hands of Substantial earlier this month when he registered his second career success in the Amazing Mauritius Cup. The shortest priced runner of the day stayed within striking range of Sands of Dubai, who was brushed up to hit the front and brought the field into the straight. Vivek soon made his bid to collar Sands of Dubai opposite the stands and kept going under the whip to stay beyond the reach of Treasure Gold, whose late dash fetched him the runner-up spot. Sands of Dubai stayed in third, just ahead of Land of Plenty, who trailed the field till entering the straight and improved steadily to gain the fourth place.
 
As if to belie his name, Malesh Narredu-groomed hot favourite Dash refused to move out of the gates, a fact which a majority of race-goers were unaware of till the commentator exclaimed: “I think Dash is left in the gate,” and that after the field had travelled four furlongs! Be that as it may, the consistency of HJ Antia-trained Expedite finally paid off as the filly proved too good for her rivals in the day’s opening event, the Radha Sigtia Trophy run over a mile and quarter. Expedite jumped out smartly from the barriers and led briefly before allowing the 20 to 1 longshot Multiverse to head the field. As soon as the heads turned for home, Mustakim Alam went into an overdrive atop Expedite (Phoenix Tower – Royal Gesture) to overhaul Multiverse and surged ahead for a comfortable victory over the long-time leader, who retained the second slot by a short-head from late-warming Exuma whilst Regina Memorabilis ended fourth.
 
Antia completed a lucrative double when Nelson River raised a resolute gallop whe,  his saddle partner Haridas Gore urged him to put his best foot forward. Earlier, Champagne Smile led all the way from the gates with Walter and Nelson River racing close behind. Gore put Nelson River into top gear shortly after crossing the two-furlong post following which Antia’s ward wore down both Walter and Champagne Smile. Keeping his pressure intact, Gore steered Nelson River (Planetaire – Midnight Wind) confidently to ward off Walter’s threat. Daulat Mai wrest the third place from Champagne Smile close home. Punters hoped that Nazzak Chenoy-saddled Mila would make amends for her previous failure and backed her once again. Antony-ridden Mila, however, raised no hopes for her followers at any stage of the race and finished sixth.
 
Faisal Abbas-nursed Betsy lived up to the promise shown in her previous effort when finishing a close second to Nelson River and shed her maiden status in the concluding event. Apprentice Bharath Singh-ridden Betsy stayed close behind Lightning Pace and Luminosity in the early stages of the sprint before making her bid. Bharath was a bit adventurous as he pushed Betsy through a narrow opening between Lightning Pace and Luminosity and interfered with the latter, who had to be steadied and lost his stride. Betsy (Pinson – Mineral Deposit) soon hit the front and went away to oblige the punters even as Lion King came with a late run to finish second while Miss Magic, the winner’s stablemate, slipped unnoticed through the crowd of horses ahead to finish a notable third, half-length in front of Lightning Blaze.