UAE Polo and Ghantoot have qualified for the final of the IFZA Gold Cup, the most prestigious polo tournament played in Asia and the Middle East.
The tournament, which is being streamed live on POLOLINE TV, sees eight teams, up to 18 goals, compete at Al Habtoor Polo Resort & Club.
In the day’s opener, UAE Polo dominated the first two chukkas to take a commanding 5-0 lead over Abu Dhabi halfway into the second period. While Abu Dhabi defeated UAE in their previous clash, this time, UAE took the upper hand as Sheikha Maitha’s team displayed their best polo to secure a place in Friday’s final. UAE will therefore have a chance to defend their 2020 title.
Up next, Habtoor and Ghantoot – the latter, perhaps, being the best team of this season so far – went head to head in the second semifinal. The recent winners of the IFZA Silver Cup fought hard, but Ghantoot, led by the Araya-Llorente duo, were able to take control from the start, taking the win to secure a place in the championship match.
THE IFZA GOLD CUP IS STREAMED LIVE ON POLOLINE TV HERE.
SEMIFINAL #1: UAE POLO 12-6 ABU DHABI
UAE Polo: HH Sheikha Maitha 0, Lukin Monteverde 3 (4 goals), Tomas Panelo 7 (5), Guillermo Willington 7 (3). Total: 17.
Abu Dhabi: Faris Al Yabhouni 0 (2 goals), Bautista Beguerie 4, Gonzalo Deltour 6 (1), Alfredo Cappella Barabucci 8 (3). Total: 18.
Score UAE Polo: 1-1, 6-1, 9-3, 10-5, 12-6.
SEMIFINAL #2: GHANTOOT 13-9 HABTOOR
Ghantoot: Nasser Al Shamsi 1, Cesar Crespo 4, Pablito Llorente 6 (6 goals), Marcos Araya 7 (7). Total: 18.
Habtoor Polo: Mohammed Al Habtoor 0, Félix Esaín 3, Juan Jauretche 6 (1 goal), Facundo Sola 9 (8). Total: 18.
Progresión Ghantoot: 4-0, 7-2, 9-5, 12-7, 13-9.
The IFZA Gold Cup resumes on Wednesday with the Subsidiary semifinals:
2pm: Zedan vs Dubai Wolves by CAFU
4pm: IFZA Mahra vs Bangash
IFZA GOLD CUP: Fixture & Teams
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