Dubai defeated Brunei by 16-12 in the first match of the Casa de Campo Silver Cup, part of the 45th INDI International Polo Tournament.
Patron Rashid Albwardy once again teamed up with Adolfo Cambiaso, the best player of the world; they play to defend the title they won last year at the Santa María Polo Club.
Cambiaso has maintained a 2-year winning streak in Sotogrande, winning 23 matches in a row. In 2014 he won with Valiente, while last year he won with Dubai.
The match took place on Los Pinos, field 4. Dubai, which includes Uruguayans Alejo Taranco and Santiago Stirling, faced a fierce opponent, but they managed to control the match. Bahar Jefri’s team came back strong in the fifth chukker; 10-goalers Pablo Mac Donough and Pelon Stirling showed their skills and scored to close the margin down to one (11-12).
In the last seven minutes, Cambiaso’s experience and class put a halt on Brunei’s efforts. He scored four goals in a row and Dubai the match 16-12.
The Casa de Campo Silver Cup continues tomorrow, with a match between Ayala Polo Team and Dos Lunas A&G Banca Privada.
Score Dubai:: 3-1/ 7-2/ 9-3/ 12-6/ 12-11/ 16-12.
Adolfo Cambiaso: “Honestly, I didn’t know how undefeated games I have had, but I am glad to know it. I have been lucky to be in great teams and organizations. With Jejo (Taranco) I have been doing really well in the last years here in Spain.”
“The Sotogrande season is one of the easiest to start, as you get here with rhythm and practice from England. So it is quite easy to adapt to this season: the fields are much faster, the balls are wood and the referees are Argentine. In England, the fields are heavier, the ball rolls less and the rain makes it a bit complicated, but the statistics were more in my favor in the Queen’s Cup than in the Gold Cup.”
“Sotogrande has improved greatly this year. The fields are much better than last year, and I know there was a lot of effort put into it. Sotogrande is one of those places in the world where you know you’ll play on great fields.”
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