The 29th Kuala Lumpur SEA Games (KL2017) polo opening match between Malaysia and Brunei on Aug 22, at the Putrajaya Equestarian Park, will see Youth and Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin facing off against royalties from Brunei.

According to the provisional Brunei polo team list released, among the seven players listed are four Brunei royalties - Prince Abdul Mateen Bolkiah, 26; Princess Azemah Ni'matul Bolkiah, 33; Pangiran Muda Bahar Bolkiah, 36; Pangiran Muda Abdul Qawi, 43.

Prince Abdul Mateen, who is sixth in line to the Brunei throne, is known to the public as a keen sportsman while his elder sister, Azemah Ni'matul is one of the two female polo players in the KL2017 equestrian polo events.

As for the Malaysian team, Khairy, who is the first minister in the region to take part in the biennial Games, will be playing together with six other top Malaysian polo players.

They are Shaik Reismann Mohamed Ismail, Muhammad Faizal Abu Bakar, Abdul Rashid Hasnan, Amran Selamat, Tengku Ahmad Shazril Ezzani Tengku Suleiman and Mohd Zulhelmi Nadzar.

Team manager Mohamad Zekri Ibrahim said he felt honoured by the presence of Khairy in the team, as the minister is an experienced polo player, and showed high commitment to the game.

-- BERNAMA