Holders Croatia beat Qatar at Beach Handball World Championships

Doha: Qatar went down fighting to title holders Croatia in a gripping Group II encounter at the IHF Men s Beach Handball World Championships which con...

Doha: Qatar went down fighting to title-holders Croatia in a gripping Group II encounter at the IHF Men’s Beach Handball World Championships which continued in China, yesterday.

At the Pingtan International Beach Sports Base in Pingtan Island, Qatar put up a spirited performance but ultimately succumbed to a 18-20, 19-20 defeat in their first match in the main round.

Despite Croatia’s status as favourites, Qatar managed to pose a huge threat in the crucial encounter last afternoon.

However, Croatia got the better of Qatar in the opening period to take a 1-0 lead with Lucian Bura causing the biggest damage to the Asian champions.

Qatar came back stronger in the second period, pushing Croatia to their limits, but the Europeans finally managed to get away with another narrow period victory, wrapping up the match with 2-0 win.