Japan went on to a surprise 31:27 win against the Netherlands, taking the first place in Group C and subsequently eliminating the Republic of Korea, the reigning champions, from contention, as the title holders are heading to the President’s Cup.

In Group D, Kosovo became the second debutants to secure a win at the IHF Women’s Youth World Championship, after Nigeria had previously clinched their own win against Angola, while France extended their winning streak to three matches, clinching a 34:18 win against Brazil.

GROUP C

• Japan vs Netherlands 31:27 (13:13)

GROUP D

• France vs Brazil 34:18 (18:6)
• India vs Kosovo 14:25 (6:15)

What happened: After the Republic of Korea secured a 66:17 win against Canada, Japan were facing a must-win situation if they were to progress into the main round and they delivered their best performance as of yet, with a 31:27 win against the Netherlands. The match went back and forth in the first half, but eventually Japan took control in the second part, with their trademark 3-2-1 defence, which shapeshifted into a 2-4 at times, as the European side had nothing in their arsenal to counter this move. With six goals from Ai Nakao, Japan delivered a 31:27 win and jumped into the first place in the standings, basically eliminating the Republic of Korea from contention, as the reigning champions finished third in the standings and are heading into the President’s Cup, not being able to finish higher than the 17th place now.

In Group D, France dominated Brazil and secured their third win in three matches, starting the main round with as many points as Japan, two, in Group II. The reigning European Under-17 champions delivered a clinical performance in defence, conceding only six goals in the last match of the preliminary round against Brazil. All but one of France’s outfield players scored at least one goal, while the goalkeepers combined for 15 saves, as the European side routed their opponents by 16 goals, 34:18.

In the battle for the third place in Group D, Kosovo met India and the European side took the early lead and never looked back, securing a clear win, 25:14, in their best effort so far at China 2024. Diona Dresh scored seven times for Kosovo, as India turned the ball over 25 times during the match, with the nine-goal lead at the break being enough for the European team to celebrate their maiden win at the IHF Women’s Youth World Championship, 25:14.

Stat of the day: 2 – Two debutants – Nigeria and Kosovo – finally broke their duck and secured their maiden wins at the IHF Women’s Youth World Championship, beating Angola and India respectively. Only two other sides which are making their debuts – Greenland and the Chinese Taipei – are still looking for their maiden wins.

What’s next: Japan and France will start the main round Group II with two points, while the Netherlands and Brazil are due to start with zero points, making it a tough proposition for any of the latter two sides to secure a place in the quarter-finals.