Thirty-three matches prepare the Gulf teams for the double qualifiers

The Gulf teams struggled to reach the optimal preparations for the double Asian qualifiers which were postponed until it was decided to complete them in June 2021 with the pool system. Internal and external camps and friendly matches were organized at separate times from November of last year until May of this year.

The Gulf teams played a total of 33 matches, divided into internal and external camps, some of them in the nature of Gulf matches, while the Qatari team went to participate in the European qualifiers at the special invitation of the International Federation and the European Union last March.

The matches of the Gulf teams in the double qualifiers will start next Thursday, where Bahrain will meet Cambodia, while Qatar will meet India. On the other hand, Kuwait will meet Australia, and the Gulf matches will be completed on Saturday with a purely Gulf meeting that will bring together Saudi Arabia with Yemen. The Gulf meetings will resume on Monday, June 7, with Iraq and Cambodia, and on the same day the two Gulf teams Qatar and Oman will meet in an awaited confrontation.

Kuwait is the host of Group Two in the group runner-up with 10 points, two points behind the leader Australia, while Iraq leads the third group with 11 points, followed by Bahrain with nine points, which is scheduled to host the matches of this group.

The fourth group host Saudi Arabia which tops the table with 11 points, while Yemen is fourth in the same group with five points, and the fifth group host Qatar which leads with 16 points, followed by Oman with 12 points, while the UAE, host of Group Seven, is fourth with six points.

It is noteworthy that since the start of the Corona pandemic, which extended for the second year in a row, the world has lived through difficult conditions at all levels, including sports, where the teams face great challenges in order to reach full readiness for various competitions.