Mohammad Al Habtoor admits tough beach polo draw

Dubai: Mohammad Al Habtoor has admitted it will be a tough ask to defend his crown at this weekend’s Julius Baer Beach Polo Cup being held at the Mina A’Salam Hotel.

“This year all four teams are evenly balanced and it is difficult to really say who holds the edge. The first day of the tournament [Friday] will be the right indicator and we will know who will be contesting for the final the next day,” Al Habtoor told media at the pre-event launch yesterday.

Initially called the “Beach Polo Cup”, the tournament was first held at the Habtoor Grand Beach Resort and Spa in 2004.

Al Habtoor holds the unique record of leading his team to wins in all three years that the competition has been held so far.

“My team has the experience and we have been playing regularly at competitions all over the world. Winning again will definitely be a tough thing to achieve,” Al Habtoor admitted.

Al Habtoor will be leading the Maradiva team, which also includes young Habtoor Al Habtoor and Argentinian professional JJ Storni. “I played in a tournament against him [Storni] and his team won. I was impressed with his play and that is why I have invited him to be in my team,” he said.

The three other teams in the fray for the title will be the Julius Baer team led by Rashid Al Habtoor, the Aston Martin team with Saeed Bin Drai as captain and the Le Clos team, led by Switzerland’s Piero Dillier.

Organisers mamemo productions have been putting the final touches to the impressive tournament venue, which has been built at the cost of an estimated Dh14 million on the beach adjacent to Mina A’Salam, facing the Burj Al Arab.

“Dubai was the talking point of the polo world after that first beach polo tournament in 2004. And now, after six years, we are back with the sole aim of being the best,” said Sam Katiela, founder and creator of the tournament.

The draw ceremony will be held at the players’ party on Thursday night, with the two winning teams on Friday sealing their place in Saturday’s final.