National handball team through to the main round featuring the top 24 teams at the ongoing World Championships.
An inspired performance on goal from Anadin Sulijakovic helped Qatar progress to the main round of the ongoing World Handball Championship with a close 25-22 win over regional rivals Kuwait on Sunday.
Qatar’s maiden win of the tournament, after suffering a heavy defeat against France in the opener and then a close call against Austria, sees them qualify as the third-best team in Group C with three points on board.
Veselin Vujovic’s side had to overcome a late surge from Kuwait in Croatia’s Zatika Sports Center, yet Zarko Markovic’s seven goals earlier saw them pull through.
Kuwait were left scoreless in the first eight minutes, courtesy of Sulijakovic’s impressive shot-stopping. On the other hand, Qatar had already scored four.
It was largely down to Qatar’s goalkeeper that the Maroons went 11-7 up in the break. Sulijakovic managed to save five in the first twenty minutes, with an efficiency of more than 50 per cent. He finished with eleven saves with 37 per cent efficiency — still a strong tally.
Qatar’s efficiency in front of goal made the difference, too. While Al Annabi’s frontline started with a feeble display against France, the improvement against Austria only bettered against Kuwait.
Markovic’s seven goals came from just ten shots on goal. Rafael Capote, Ahmad Madadi, and Amine Guehis who shared nine goals between them, scored with 100 per cent accuracy.
The star of the night, however, was Kuwait’s left-winger Abdulaziz Alshammari. The 32-year-old scored eight with just nine shots, leading his side’s late charge that left Qatar helpless for a brief moment.
Alshammari was accurate with five of his attempts from seven meters and two from the six meters as his only inaccurate shot came from the nine meters mark.
Seven of Alshammari’s goals came in the second half as Kuwait kept Qatar in check by not letting the 2015 World Championship runners-up lead by more than two goals.
Qatar had to wait until a breakthrough from experienced campaigner Frankis Carol Marzo, the team’s highest scorer in the competition so far, in the 59th minute as he took his personal goal tally to 17.
Nidhal Aissa followed up with another goal and by the time Abdullah Alkhamees — Kuwait’s second-highest scorer on the night — scored with just a minute left in the clock, it was a bit too late.
Qatar, however, are still in a precarious situation having carried over a goal difference of minus 17 as expectations are set to better last edition’s 22nd-place finish.
Al Annabi will be in Group II in the main round, joined by France and Austria from Group C. Each team will face advancing teams from Group D which will likely be the Netherlands, Hungary, and North Macedonia. The top two teams from the six-team group will qualify for the quarterfinals of the 32-team competition.
The Kuwaiti side making their return to the World stage following a 16-year hiatus will meanwhile compete in the President’s Cup, which decides the final ranks of the bottom eight teams.
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