In a hard-fought and entertaining match, Japan had a poor start but were better in the closing minutes, which helped them to celebrate a two-goal victory. 

MAIN ROUND GROUP IV
Japan vs Austria 32:30 (15:19)

While Austria had used a 12-player squad in all previous encounters at Spain 2021, now they could rely on 14 players. Goalkeeper Petra Blazek and line player Stefanie Kaiser, who had missed four games after positive COVID-19 tests, finally had an opportunity to make their debut at the tournament.

Their return seemed to inspire the team and as Kaiser opened the score and Ines Ivancok netted three times, Austria took a surprising 5:0 lead. 

After a time-out taken by Shigeo Kusimoto, Japan's Natsumi Akiyama scored their first goal five and a half minutes into the match, and the Asian team started to catch up. But after they closed the gap to 6:9, a string of Mirela Dedic's goals helped Austria to pull clear at 13:8. Besides, Japan's goalkeeper Atsuko Baba got a red card early in the match, which seemed to affect the team in a negative way. 

The European side used their superiority in height and power to get past Japanese defence, while Blazek, who had already played at the World Championship in 2005, 2007 and 2009, marked her comeback with a few saves. So, although Japan stabilised their game, Austria went into half-time leading by four goals. 

"We really had to do our best to win today. Baba's red card was not in our plan, but the girls stuck together and fought really hard," Shigeo Kusimoto said. 

Early in the second half, they increased their advantage to 21:16, but then started to get tired and missed a few chances – and Japan used a 4:0 run to cut the deficit. The Asian team then had a chance to draw level, but Kaho Nakayama hit the post from the 7m line.

A few minutes later, they did equalise at 23:23 following two consecutive goals by Saki Hattori. Austria again got in front, 26:23, but Japan's solid defence and fast counterattacks helped them to bounce back at 26:26 and then take their first lead in the match at 28:27 in minute 54.

It was basically anyone's game, but in the closing minutes, Japan looked fresher, which allowed them to win this match. With four points, the Asian team still have a mathematical chance to reach the quarter-final and will wait for the result of today’s last group match, Croatia versus Spain. 

hummel Player of the Match: Ines Ivancok, Austria

Photo: RFEBM / J. L. Recio