Cuba became the first team to seal a semi-finals berth at the 2023 IHF Men’s Emerging Nations Championship with an excellent 27:17 win over Guatemala, their second in as many days.

With four points ahead of their opponents and one game still to be played in the group, Cuba cannot be leapfrogged and will have two rest days before the semi-finals, where they will face the Group D winners.

Group C

• Cuba vs Guatemala 27:17 (15:5)

Fatigue was not an issue for Cuba after winning a pivotal game against Great Britain on Tuesday, 32:28, despite facing a hungry Guatemala team. The two teams started to trade blows at the start of the game, but Cuba amped up their defence and from that moment on, they looked unstoppable.

It was mostly thanks to goalkeeper Magnol Suarez Fis, who saved 11 shots for a 68.5% saving efficiency, that Cuba jumped to such a big lead at the break (15:5) as Guatemala failed to score for nine minutes and 47 seconds, as the gap ballooned from 5:3 to 8:3.

It went from bad to worse for the inexperienced Guatemala side, who turned the ball over 10 times and had a meagre 21% attacking efficiency in the first half, all on their way to the third-lowest number of goals scored in the first 30 minutes at the IHF Men’s Emerging Nations Championship, five, with the record set by Armenia, a single goal scored against the Faroe Islands at Bulgaria 2017, still standing.

As Cuba started rotating their players, sheltering a 10-goal lead at the break, 15:5, Guatemala tried to cut the gap to save face in their maiden appearance in the competition. But mostly the defence put in less effort than in the first half, as the gap floated around the 10-goal mark.

Hanser Michel Rodriguez Rodriguez, Cuba’s top scorer from the first game, had another excellent outing. He finished the match with seven goals, despite playing roughly 40 minutes, helping his side keep the gap and even improve it to 12 goals.

Eventually, Guatemala, which needed only 14 minutes in the second half to score the number of goals they had in the first, cut the gap and avoided the highest loss at Bulgaria 2023 as Cuba did not push the pedal to the metal until the end, as the win was in their bag.

Losing top scorer Edwin Josue Martinez, who scored four times, due to an injury late in the game did not help Guatemala either, as they conceded a 17:27 loss against Cuba in their maiden game at the IHF Men’s Emerging Nations Championship.

As Cuba are now qualified for the semi-finals with two wins in two games, they will have a rest in the next two days, having ensured a Top 4 place. On the other hand, Guatemala play on Thursday against Great Britain in a bid to avoid finishing in the last four places, only a win saving them from finishing in the last place in the group.

Player of the Match: Magnol Suarez Fis (Cuba)