Yasser Al-Qahtani netted twice to help Saudi Arabia kick-off their 18th Gulf Nations Cup campaign with a hard-fought 2-1 victory over nine-man Bahrain in Abu Dhabi on Thursday. Talal Youssef put Bahrain ahead in the 14th minute from the penalty spot but Al-Qahtani leveled the score 12 minutes later. He grabbed the decisive goal three minutes from time to lead Saudi Arabia to a winning start in Group B action. Bahrain duo Sayed Adnan and Mohamed Hussein were sent-off in the 34th and 62nd minutes. In the other group match, Hawar Taher struck home in the 29th minute to lead Iraq to a 1-0 win over Qatar. Saudi Arabia and Iraq are joint leaders in Group B with three points while Bahrain and Qatar lie third and fourth with no points.