The three race meetings, between the last two Tuesdays, turned out to be quite entertaining. And the eight trophy events held during the period also saw some competitive sport. For instance, Accuser’s victory on February 17 was long overdue for the Monsoon Derby winner. There has always been a question mark about the fitness of the Twist And Turn-Arisen colt as the Bharath Singh-trainee is hardly the one who likes pleasing the early birds.Therefore, the few wins that he has in his kitty are the priced and prized events.

On this day, in the 2,000m Shiseido Cup, jockey S. Shanker had Accuser settled behind Star Selection till about the halfway mark before slipping into the winning lead that helped him counter the late challenge from Compassionate by a shade over a length. Thrilling Proposal, the 6-4 favourite, was a disappointing third and his run is best ignored.

The day also saw trainer Darius Byramji pitching in with a long-priced trophy-double through Rebelwithacause and Final Round in the Navy Cup and the Ich Dien Cup, respectively. Both horses won from the start having let down big following in their previous outings.

Earlier on Saturday in the 2,800m Queen Elizabeth II Cup, it was Allodium who was, proverbially, third time lucky after losing his last two starts in close finishes involving Obligado. But it was the Red Chief, with a light impost on his back, who stretched the eight-year-old to justify that every kilogram is a burden over a gruelling trip. Therefore, Obligado’s abject failure in the race had much to do with his heavy impost of 61 kg. The Darius’ trainee placed a poor third, in excess of four lengths behind the winner.

The 1,600m Nanoli Stud Million, the other important event on that day, was an easy pick for Vijay Singh’s Calorific, who again displayed his amazing turn of foot that had bagged the Steinbeck-Artistic three-year-old the 1,400m Zara Shah Cup on the Derby day. The likes of Elistanos, Bollywood Dreams and Lanzarotes were no match for his prowess and may do better with more educational runs.

The Metropolitan, the 1,200m prestigious sprint, was lifted by the worthy challenger Gypsy King who has been on the up ever since the Steinbeck-Cico Park colt had returned from his summer sojourn in Bangalore. The Bharath-trainee allowed the speedy Tasmac a limited liberty upfront before getting into his businesslike act 250m from home.

Apprise’s victory on February 10, in the 1,600m Baqlava Cup, was simply smashing. Better known for his sprinting exploits and going over the trip for the first time, the Don’t Forget Me-Sterling Lass four-year-old simply drew away from the field once given reins by C. Alford at the top of the straight. The Vijay-trainee may have more wins coming before the season ends.