Dubai Wolves post win in IFZA Silver Cup
DUBAI: The second day of the IFZA Silver Cup 2021 delivered a thrilling match between Zedan Polo team and Dubai Wolves.
Zedan Polo team had a strong start as Geronimo Del Carril scored the first goal and had 4 goal advantage by the end of the second chukker.
The Dubai Wolves by Cafu made an impressive comeback at the third chukker with two goals from Alejandro Muzzio.
Habtoor Al Habtoor, patron of the team, showed grit as he ended the third chukker with a goal, closing in on Zedan Polo.
The excitement kicked up a notch with an excellent pass from Habtoor that allowed Muzzio to score the goal that placed the teams tied at 6 goals. The Dubai Wolves took off at the final chukker with back to back goals and it was the goal from Habtoor that sealed the win for the team at 10 goals to 7.
The next round of the IFZA Silver Cup 2021 will be held on Jan.25 with a match between Habtoor Polo and UAE Polo teams which will begin at 4pm.
The final of the Silver Cup will be played on Friday, Feb.5 at the grounds of Al Habtoor Polo Resort and Club.
Silver Cup is part of the Dubai Polo Gold Cup (DPGC) Series is being held under the patronage of Sheikh Maktoum Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai.
The Silver Cup is being played under the Hurlingham Polo Association (HPA) banner, with strict international supervision according to the HPA rules and provision of its umpires. The tournament falls under World Polo Tour’s WPT Cup Category. The Silver Cup winners are awarded 60 points, finalists with 30 points, semi-finalists with 15 points and the rest of the players with 8 points.
Five tournaments fall under the umbrella of the Dubai Polo Gold Cup series, including IFZA Silver Cup (18 goal handicap), which will run from Jan.22 to Feb.5; Polo Masters Cup (6-8 goal handicap) to run from Feb.7-12, IFZA Gold Cup (18-goal handicap) from Feb.14 to March 5, Dubai Challenge Cup (810-goal handicap) from March 13-20.
The 20th edition of Dubai Cup (6-8 goal handicap) scheduled to take place from March 31 to April 9 will bring the curtains down on the series.
The Dubai Polo Gold Cup Series in the UAE is one of only five tournaments played worldwide in the WPT Championship Cup category. It is on a par with world-class events held in Argentina, Spain, the UK and the US.
The Dubai Polo Gold Cup Series started in 2009 with tournaments carrying a handicap of 10-12 goals and has grown to host teams playing in 18-goal handicap matches.
Dubai Polo Gold Cup Series was founded in 2009 by Mohammed Al Habtoor, patron of the Habtoor Polo team.
Growing rapidly every year, the Gold Cup (Dubai Open) was recognised by the World Polo Tour (WPT); in January 2014, the WPT commitee credited the Gold Cup tournament as the highest competition in terms of points within the WPT Challenge Cup category, elevating it to 50 points for the winner. The year 2015 marked the first time ever that the WPT upgraded the Gold Cup Tournament from ‘Challenge Cup’ to the highly coveted ‘WPT Cup’, resulting in winners receiving 60 points. In 2017, the tournament was moved up to WPT Championship Cup – the highest competition point-wise, awarding its winners with 125 points.
The six teams participating teams in the Silver Cup 2021 are UAE Polo Team (Patron: Sheikha Maitha Bint Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum), Bangash Polo Team (Patron: Haider Bangash), Dubai Wolves Polo Team by Cafu (Patron: Habtoor Al Habtoor), Habtoor Polo Team (Patron: Mohammed Al Habtoor) and IFZA Polo Team (Patron: Rashid Al Habtoor) Zedan Polo Team (Patron: Amr Zedan)