By Alejandra Ocampo

The Dubai Gold Cup Series continued at Al Habtoor Polo Resort and Club with the Standard Chartered Gold Cup, the most important polo event in Asia and the Middle East. Two teams, Ghantoot and UAE, have already secured their place in the tournament semifinals.

Ghantoot advanced in the tournament after defeating Abu Dhabi and AM/UAE in the penalty shootout, before UAE took a hard fought victory over Habtoor. The results mean that both Habtoor and Zedan, will play the tournament quarter finals.

In the opening game of the day, Zedan got off to a strong start against Bangash, taking control of the play early on. By halftime, Amr Zedan’s team had a comfortable 6-2 lead. However, Bangash, led by a fantastic Federico von Potobsky, fought back over the next two next chukkas, managing to tie the match 7-all in the fifth. But with just minutes left on the clock, Santiago Laborde came through for Zedan, scoring to take the tight 8-7 victory.

Up next, the two of the strongest organisations of the competition went head to head: title holders UAE and Habtoor. The match did not disappoint. It was a hard fought game, but Habtoor were up 8-7 by half time.

Both teams scored in the fourth, and it even seemed as if the match could go into extra chukka. The game was tied 12-all with only seconds left on the clock when a penalty was awarded to UAE. Tomás Beresford kept his focus and put the ball between the posts, seal the 13-12 win and assuring HH Sheikha Maitha’s UAE a place in the semifinals.

The finals of the Gold Cup (Dubai Open) are set for Friday, March 6.

ALL GOLD CUP MATCHES WILL BE STREAMED LIVE VIA POLOLINE TV.

The quarter finals are scheduled for Friday, February 28 and Saturday, February 29:

Friday, February 28, 4,15pm: Habtoor vs. AM/UAE 

Saturday, February 29, 4pm: Abu Dhabi vs. Zedan

ZEDAN 8 vs. BANGASH 7

ZEDAN: Amr Zedan 0, Manuel Plaza de Ayala 6 (3 goals), Juan Jauretche 6 (1 penalty), Santiago Laborde 6 (4)

BANGASH: Haider Bangash 0, Manuel Elizalde 6 (2, 1 penalty), Federico von Potobsky 5 (5), Juan Ambroggio 6.

Score Zedan: 2-1, 5-2, 6-2, 7-5, 8-7.

UAE 13 vs. HABTOOR 12

UAE: HH Sheikha Maitha 0, Benjamin Panelo 4 (4), Tomás Panelo 6 , Tomás Beresford 6 (9, 4 penalties).

HABTOOR: Mohammed Al Habtoor 0, Felix Esain 2 (1), Facundo Sola 9 (8, 3 penalties), Min Podestá 7 (3).

Score UAE: 2-3, 4-5, 7-8, 10-9, 13-12.

IMAGES

Zedan vs. Bangash / UAE vs. Habtoor

REWATCH

UAE vs. Habtoor

The Gold Cup, the most important tournament of Asia and the Middle East, was established in 2009. Over the last decade, the competition has become one of the most prestigious of the international polo calendar. The Gold Cup also awards points for the WPT Championship Cup category of the  World Polo Tour.

STANDARD CHARTERED GOLD CUP: TEAMS AND FIXTURES