Bahrain bounce back in big win

TDT | Manama                                                    

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com

Bahrain put their tenacity on display last night in a resounding 36-24 bounce-back victory against Kuwait in Asian Men’s Qualification for the men’s handball tournament at the Paris Olympic Games 2024, currently being held in Doha.

After suffering a disheartening, single-goal loss to Japan in their previous outing, which put a dent in their qualifying hopes, the Bahrainis responded in a big way yesterday, outclassing their Gulf rivals and getting their Olympic bid back on track.

The nationals welcomed back inspirational skipper Hussain Al Sayyad after missing their previous two games due to a back injury. Al Sayyad was instrumental in their win, leading all the match’s scorers with an impressive nine goals. The result earned Bahrain their second triumph in three Group B games in the qualifiers’ preliminary round.

They had previously routed Kazakhstan in their opening fixture prior to their loss to the Japanese. After a rest day today, the nationals complete the preliminaries against Iran tomorrow. It will be a winner-take-all contest, as the victors will advance to the final four along with pool winners Japan.

The Bahrainis and Iranians are currently tied on the Group B table, with the nationals holding a superior goal difference. In the other Group B contest yesterday, the Japanese wrapped up this stage with an undefeated record following a 44-19 rout of Kazakhstan. In Group A, China defeated India 46-15 and Saudi Arabia edged past the UAE 22-21.

At the end of a single round-robin, the top two teams from the two groups advance to the semi-finals, which are scheduled for Thursday. The final and game for third place will then be held on the qualifiers’ concluding day of action on Saturday. Only the winners of the Asian Men’s Qualification tournament clinch a direct berth in next year’s men’s handball competition at the Paris Olympics.

The runners-up from Doha will get another chance to book their tickets, but must compete against other top handball nations from around the world in one of three Olympic qualifying events. Bahrain are aiming to qualify for their second successive Olympics, after making their historic debut at the Tokyo Olympiad held in 2021.

It was not only the national team’s first time competing in the men’s handball tournament at any Olympic Games, but it was also the Kingdom’s maiden appearance in any team sport at the Olympics. In last night’s clash, Bahrain held a slim 16-14 advantage at the half, but after the break, were able to gradually pull away from their rivals en route to the all-important victory.

Mohammed Habib Nasser scored eight goals for the Bahrainis, while Qassim Qambar and Ahmed Fadhel added five apiece. Ali Mirza chipped in with three goals, Mahdi Saad had two, and Mohammed Hameed Rabia and Mohammed Mirza each scored once. Abdullah Alkhamees, Saleh Ali and Abdulaziz Alshammari paced the Kuwaitis in the loss with five goals each.