Tag Archives: Sheikh Ajgar Ali

Ajgar & Musthafa are the champions

Erode (TAMIL NADU ) & KOLKATA :

Ajgar Ali (left) and Mohammed Musthafa in Siliguri on Thursday
Ajgar Ali (left) and Mohammed Musthafa in Siliguri on Thursday

Siliguri:

Ever since they took the lead on Day I, Sheikh Ajgar Ali and Mohammed Musthafa never had to look back, emerging winners of the Biswa Bangla JK Tyre Himalayan Drive V – Tri-Nation 4-Wheeler TSD Rally – that concluded here on Thursday.

After driving more than 1250 km through forests, riverbeds, mountain roads and dirt tracks across India, Bhutan and Nepal over five days, the duo lifted the coveted HD 5 trophy.

Ajgar and Musthafa – the reigning National TSD (Time, Speed Distance) Rally champions – finished with 174 to win the competition for the second time. They had won the inaugural edition back in 2013. Deep Dutta and Prakash Muthusamy finished second, while Ashish Budhia and Calcutta’s Arindam Ghosh came third in the rally.

Talking about the experience, Ajgar, who comes from the village of Dighasipur (in Haldia), felt that things were more challenging for them on the first two days.

“The competition sector was really tough… The terrain was challenging. In Bhutan and Nepal the roads were really, really difficult. But I think it was far more challenging on Day I and II. Really hectic…,” the 36-year-old said after the prize distribution ceremony at a shopping mall.

Anurag Srivastava, district magistrate, Darjeeling, was the chief guest.

Ajgar added: “We started here (in Siliguri) and went to Paro. Thereafter, we went to Thimpu, then back to Paro again… Then Darjeeling, Hile (in Nepal) and back to Siliguri… So, one should understand how tough it was.”

Ajgar and Musthafa had to brave temperature of three-degrees Celsius in Paro. “In Nepal too, it wasn’t easy. The temperature was around 4-5 degrees Celsius,” Ajgar said.

“But thanks to the Himalayan Rally back in October, where the temperature was some minus five or six (degrees Celsius), we could survive the conditions in Paro and Nepal. That experience certainly helped.”

Ajgar’s navigator Musthafa thinks the duo were under more pressure, having taken the lead on the first day. “Look, this event was far more challenging for us because our performance in the past events weren’t too good.

“If you are the favourites in a competition, there’s bound to be extra pressure on you… The pressure of expectations… So, in that sense, the first day’s lead added to our pressure because everyone’s focus was on us and we were the team that others chased. Maintaining the lead was really difficult, from Day I to Day V.

“The rally was well and truly a roller-coaster…

“We, therefore, decided that we would just not look at the results and instead, concentrate on the basics. In any case, Ajgar and I share a wonderful rapport and we understand each other really well.

“The intensity was high and the end result is there for everyone to see,” said Musthafa, who comes from Erode.

The duo now look forward to the Uttarakhand Adventure Rally in April, where they will certainly be one of the favourites. “Honestly, our understanding developed ever since the first time we came together as a pair, which was at the Himalayan Drive (HD) I back in 2013.

“We won that as the understanding between the two of us had already developed well,” Musthafa said.

Ajgar and Musthafa, having won India’s premier rallies like the Raid de Himalaya and Desert Storm in the adventure categories, had come second in HD II and third in HD III.

source: http://www.telegraphindia.com / The Telegraph, Calcutta,India / Front Page> Sports> Story / by Sayak Banerjee / Friday – March 03rd, 2017

Ajgar-Mustafa rule the roost

Erode (TAMIL NADU ) & KOLKATA : 

Siliguri:

After traversing through the hills and the plains for over 1,250km in five days, Ajgar Ali (Kolkata) and co-driver Mohammed Mustafa (Erode) emerged a clear winner over nearest rivals Deep Dutta (co-driver Prakash Muthusamy) in the Biswa Bangla JK Tyre Himalayan Drive 5 here on Thursday.

Ajgar and Mustafa enjoyed the extra edge of a strong lead in the national class points table going into the final day. But the duo decided to stick to the basics. They showed great understanding from the start (Hile in Nepal) and reached here without having to nurse the car right through the journey.

“There was nothing much to do for us today. We had to just keep the car on the road for the title,” said Mustafa.

They were obviously thrilled to have clinched their maiden international title.

“We have driven together for five years and have been successful in about 50 TSD events. But this was our first international event. It was a totally new experience. We saw different countries, beautiful locations and lovely people and that set the winning mood for us,” he added.

Mustafa said they were under some pressure after taking the lead on the first day. “But we managed to come clean thanks to Ajgar’s brilliant drive. I was always confident of him. He also does not complicate things.”

Ajgar was pretty pleased as well and credited the title win to Mustafa’s clean work. “He did a great job right through.”

Having tasted success at the international stage, the former Himalayan

Drive champions promised to return next year. “We will be back and in

an even better shape to defend our title,” said Ajgar.

Ashish Budhia (co-driver Arindam Ghosh) had to rest content for the third place.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Sports> Other Sports / by Rayan Rozario / March 02nd, 2017