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Win over Iran serves as consolation prize for co-hosts Poland

22 Jan. 2023

Win over Iran serves as consolation prize for co-hosts Poland

Poland finished the 2023 IHF Men's World Championship on a high, taking a 26:22 bittersweet win over the Islamic Republic of Iran and finishing in the fourth in Group I of the main round in Krakow.
 
Main Round Group I

Islamic Republic of Iran vs Poland 22:26 (10:16)
 
Surely underwhelmed by missing a chance to enter the quarter-finals race so early in the competition, Poland were still trying to seal a win against the Islamic Republic of Iran, which would end the 28th edition of the IHF Men's World Championship on a high note.
 
Obviously, it was impossible to wipe away the disappointment. Still, Poland knew that it would be an uphill battle immediately after they lost the second match of the preliminary round against Slovenia, relinquishing any chance of a top-three finish in Group I of the main round in Krakow after the loss against Spain.
 
Still, Poland had something left in the tank, and after the win against Montenegro, they were aiming to add another one against the Islamic Republic of Iran. This team had only one win and was condemned to the last place in the group, irrespective of the result.
 
Poland established the order quite fast, with a 5:0 run spanning between the second and sixth minutes of the match, ending any chance or hopes for the Asian side, who did not have the proper experience to rival Poland.
 
With the attack failing to lift off the ground, Iran's coach Veselin Vujović decided to take out the goalkeeper and usher a player in attack, creating a seven-on-six situation. But the tactic backfired for Iran, with Poland scoring three times in the open goal to create a big lead, 16:10, at the break, the best-attacking performance for the co-hosts in the first 30 minutes in the tournament.
 
But as coach Patryk Rombel gave the chance for players who had not featured so prominently in the tournament to enter the final match for the co-hosts in the 2023 IHF Men's World Championship, Poland started to lose a bit of momentum in attack.
 
Constantly pressing, motivated by Vujović, Iran rode a great performance from right back Mohammad Reza Oraei, who scored six goals in the match, to cut the gap to only three goals, 24:21, with nine minutes to go. 
 
However, Poland's goalkeeper Adam Morawski came big when his team needed him most, saving five shots for a 45% efficiency. At the same time, the "hummel Player of the Match", back Ariel Pietrasik, scored six times to deliver a win, 26:22, for the co-hosts, who were once again underwhelming in the second half.
 
The third win in six matches for Poland at the 2023 IHF Men's World Championship was enough for the co-hosts to finish in fourth place in this group, which means that they will finish between the 14th and the 16th places depending on the results in the other groups.
 
It will be the third time Poland finished outside the top 10, but it will not be their worst-ever result in the competition, which is still the 17th place at France 2017, when Poland also won three matches.
 
On the other hand, the Islamic Republic of Iran earned a single win in six matches in the competition. It will finish between the 22nd and 24th places – a new low after finishing 21st in the previous edition in 2015 – with five losses against European sides like France, Spain, Montenegro, Poland and Slovenia.
 
hummel Player of the Match: Ariel Pietrasik (Poland)