2021 WCh Egypt - Day 5: Dominant wins for Croatia and Hungary, Corrales saves the day for Spain with 10 saves

Martinovic

End of day five on 2021 WCh means group stage round two is in the books. We’ve once again seen a lot with groups all over Egypt starting to form what will in two days be their final shape. We have a lot to share with you so let’s get started with our daily recap!

The day started with the match between competition rookies Cape Verde and Germany ending up cancelled. As a result of that, 10:0 win was awarded to Germany. In the second match of the day in group A we’ve seen our SEHA national team Hungary take on Uruguay. Hungarians have once again managed to deliver a solid display in the end clinching a more than dominant 44:18 win. Telekom Veszprem’ Mate Lekai orchestrated their offense once again finishing the match with four goals. Dominik Mathe led them offensively in this one with eight goals while goalkeepers – Adam Borbely and Telekom Veszprem’s Marton Szekely combined for 23 saves. Two wins from two matches mean Hungarians will in two days decide group A winners in a direct clash against Germany.

In group B. match between Tunisia and Brazil finished with 32:32. Tatran’s Jihed Jaballah and Anouar Ben Abdallah  netted two each for Tunisia while amine Darmoul led them offensively finishing the match with nine goals. In the second match of the day in group B Poland was extremely close to stunning favored Spain. In the end, however, 26:27 in favor of ‘los Hispanos’ with Telekom Veszprem’s goalkeeper Rodrigo Corrales and his 10 saves being one of the key reasons for their eventual win.

In group C Qatar celebrated a 31:29 win over Japan. Later on in Alexandria Croatian national team players managed to redeem themselves to their fans after the opening draw against Japan with a 20:28 win over Angola. Defense functioned way better for the ‘Cowboys’ in this one helping Ivan Pesic finish the match with seven saves. Ivan Cupic on the other side led their offense finishing the match with six goals. Veszprem’s Manuel Strlek added two. Croatia will in two days play what will be the key group-stage match for them against Qatar in terms of deciding who enters the main round as top-positioned team from group C.

In group D Argentina celebrated a 24:21 win over Bahrain while Denmark delivered yet another strong outing defeating DR Congo 19:39. Johan Hansen led them in this one with eight goals.

In what will be a very important duel for both sides, SEHA national team Belarus will tomorrow in Alexandria (20.30 CET) play Slovenia. After a draw against Russia and a dominant performance against South Korea, win over Slovenia would help Belarusians secure a very good position going into the main round of the competition.

Macedonians are, on the other side, ahead of their clash against Chile tomorrow (15.30 CET) in Cairo in a quite different situation. After two tough losses, win against Chile means a ticket for the main round of the competition. Loss, on the other hand, means they’ll continue the competition in the President’s Cup.

SCORES & GOALS

DAY 5 (17.1)

Group A

Cape Verde – Germany 0:10

HUNGARY – Uruguay 44:18 (Lekai 4)

Group B

Tunisia – Brazil 32:32 (Jaballah 2, Ben Abdallah 2)

Poland – Spain 26:27 (Walczak 1/ Maqueda 1, Corrales 10 saves)

Group C

Qatar – Japan 31:29

Angola – CROATIA 20:28 (Cupic 6, Strlek 2, Pesic 7 saves)

Group D

Argentina – Bahrain 24:21

DR Congo – Denmark 19:39

TOMORROW IN EGYPT

DAY 6 (18.1.)

Group E

France – Switzerland (18.00 CET)

Norway – Austria (20.30 CET)

Group F

Portugal – Algeria (18.00 CET)

Iceland – Morocco (20.30 CET)

Group G

MACEDONIA – Chile (15.30 CET)

Sweden – Egypt (18.00 CET)

Group H

South Korea – Russia (18.00 CET)

Slovenia – BELARUS (20.30 CET)