Stellar Batinovic lifts Montenegro past Hungary

Despite a three-goal deficit at the break, Montenegro improved a lot in the second half and claimed their third straight victory at the 2023 IHF Women's World Championship, this time against Hungary. 

Group B
Montenegro vs Hungary 24:18 (7:10)

Both European teams in Group B boasted a perfect record in the competition after two games and booked early tickets to the main round, yet their encounter was to decide which side would end the group stage with the maximum of points. 

Hungary were seen as favourites, yet they failed to defeat Montenegro at the IHF Women's World Championship once again after the Balkan side had won their both previous meetings at this level, at Denmark 2015 and Japan 2019.

This time, the first half was very low-scoring as both teams fought very hard for every ball and defended much better than they attacked, combining for only 17 goals. Both goalkeepers shined once again, especially Marta Batinovic, as Montenegro's shot stopper boasts a 55.2% efficiency overall at Denmark/Norway/Sweden 2023.

Blanka Biro, who had been rested in the previous match against Cameroon, was impressive too, as her eight saves and a 53% save rate restricted Montenegro to just seven goals before the interval, as Hungary were up 10:7 and looked in a very good position to shine.

But the second half was where Batinovic truly shined. Her impressive string of saves saw the Balkan side enjoy a 6:0 run between minutes 32 and 45 before Petra Vamos finally ended that goal drought, yet Hungary lost control and looked in disarray, as the tide turned for Montenegro.

The Balkan side sealed the initiative, and they did not lose it in the last minutes, displaying some high-quality handball. Dijana Mugosa and Tatjana Brnovic were hard to stop in attack, combining for 15 of Montenegro's 24 goals, while Batinovic ended the game with 16 saves and a 48% save efficiency. 

Eventually, Montenegro won by six goals and finished top of Group B, so they will take four points to the main round, while Hungary finished second and will start the next stage with two points, as this might be a pivotal clash for the future of both teams in this competition. 

hummel Player of the Match: Marta Batinovic (Montenegro)