Kazakhstan seal historic win against Islamic Republic of Iran

07 Dec. 2021

Kazakhstan seal historic win against Islamic Republic of Iran

For the first time in six editions at the IHF Women’s World Championship, Kazakhstan progress from the preliminary round after sealing a historic win against Asian rivals, the Islamic Republic of Iran, 31:25.

Kazakhstan join Norway and Romania in Group II of the main round but will start the next phase of the competition with zero points, while Iran are set to play in Group I of the President’s Cup.

GROUP C
Kazakhstan vs Islamic Republic of Iran 31:25 (14:10)

Neither of these two Asian teams had ever progressed from the preliminary round at the IHF Women’s World Championship, therefore the game was always going to be special both for Kazakhstan and Iran.

The two sides had already met in September, in the bronze-medal game at the AHF Asian Women’s Handball Championship, with Kazakhstan taking a 38:33 win. But after a tough break against Norway and Romania in the first two games, this game was always going to be difficult.

Iran were surely buoyed by conceding a 32-goal loss against Norway in the previous match, 9:41, yet them trying throughout the whole game was rewarded by praise and respect from the Norwegian coach, Thorir Hergeirsson.

And they surely remembered those feelings when they took on the court in the Pabellón Ciutat de Castelló against their Asian rivals. But despite trying with all their might, turnovers seriously plagued Iran, as Kazakhstan jumped to an early 7:2 lead after 11 minutes.

It had already looked like game over for Iran, as Kazakhstan’s left back, Irina Alexandrova, who had already scored 15 goals in the first two matches, went on a spree, finishing the first half with five goals. However, the game is only over when the final whistle is blown and Iran duly believed that.

While goalkeeper Fatemeh Khalili Behfar did not display her usual magic, saving only four shots in the first half, Iran managed to come back and cut the gap, only to squander everything they worked for with easy mistakes.

In fact, 31 turnovers were registered in the first half, with Iran responsible for 18 of them, as their lack of experience was clearly on display on fast breaks or other dangerous situations. It was, therefore, no surprise that Kazakhstan still boasted a 14:10 lead, on their way to the main round of the competition.

The start of the second half, which featured a 7:2 run for Kazakhstan, powered by the same Alexandrova, basically sealed the deal and handed them the win, as Iran could not display a performance good enough to help them attempt a comeback.

Eventually, Kazakhstan sealed a 31:25 win, stopping short of breaking their record for the most goals scored in one single game at the IHF Women’s World Championship, 37, against Australia at Brazil 2011.

This was Kazakhstan’s only eighth win the history at the IHF Women’s World Championship, but definitely the most important one, which helped them progress from the preliminary round for the first time in six tries.

The Asian side will join Norway, Romania, the Netherlands, Sweden and Puerto Rico for Group II of the main round phase, which will also take place in Castelló.

On the other hand, Iran head to Group I of the President’s Cup, where they will face fellow Asian side Uzbekistan, Cameroon and Angola.

hummel Player of the Match: Irina Alexandrova, Kazakhstan

Photo: RFEBM / Á. Bermejo