Algeria hope to redeem themselves against Chile, Saudi Arabia prepare to challenge Iran, Russia and Bosnia-Herzegovina battle it out for 19th, and Filip Jicha and Siarhei Rutenka come head to head in the Czech Republic-Belarus fight for 17th and the President’s Cup title.

All matches will take place in Duhail Sports Hall. 

Algeria-Chile 13:00

African champions Algeria have had an unlucky tournament since day one, when they were defeated by the bronze medallists at the African championship, Egypt, decisively. 

After suffering a loss at the hands of World Championship debutants Saudi Arabia in their first President’s Cup match, Algeria now face Chile in the play-off for 23rd/24th place. 

With no wins recorded throughout the championship, Algeria will undoubtedly be looking to end their tournament on a high – but then so will Chile. 

Chile lost by only one goal to Iran yesterday, which means they will also be determined to redeem themselves after such a close loss. 

Algeria will need to watch out for Chilean Rodrigo Salinas, who played a scorching game against Iran to rack up a total of 18 goals. 

Saudi Arabia-Iran 15:00

Saudi Arabia shocked Algeria yesterday to defeat the side in a close match that the African champions likely did not think would be so hotly contested. 

Led by line layer and adidas Man of the Match Hassan Aljanabi, Saudi Arabia put in a solid effort to record their first ever win at a World Championship – at their first World Championship, which they only booked a ticket to with a wild card after Bahrain and the UAE withdrew. 

Saudi Arabia have nothing to lose when they step on the court against Iran, but the Iranian side are the undeniable favourites to win the match and take 22nd place on the final ranking. 

Iran played a close match against Chile that came down to the last minute yesterday, but they present a formidable opponent to an inexperienced team like Saudi Arabia. 

Bosnia and Herzegovina-Russia 17:00

Bosnia-Herzegovina played a furiously fast-paced match against Belarus yesterday, which ended with their clear defeat, but the World Championship debutants cannot be too disappointed with the results. 

Belarus are far from an inexperienced side with stars like Siarhei Rutenka. 

Still, the score line at the end of the match (eight goals with a score of 37:29) cannot have helped their confidence, so Bosnia-Herzegovina will need to prepare well if they hope to win tonight’s match and take 19th place on the final tournament ranking. 

Russia played a strong, well-matched game against Czech Republic yesterday, which ultimately ended with a Czech victory. 

The meeting between the two European sides was a tough one, with the winner decided only in the final few minutes after a tense match that saw the lead changing hands more than once. 

Russian goalkeeper Vadim Bogdanov played a superb match for his side to win the adidas Man of the Match award, and can be expected to make trouble for Bosnia-Herzegovina tonight. 

Russia will be out for redemption after losing such a close match, so Bosnia-Herzegovina will need to be at the top of their game when they step on the court. 

Belarus-Czech Republic 19:00

Belarus demolished Bosnia-Herzegovina in their first President’s Cup match, with a high-scoring effort that saw them defeat the debutants by eight goals. 

Fast breaks and speedy fixed attack featured heavily in the match, which means Czech Republic should be ready to be pushed to their limit. 

Czech Republic defeated Russia only in the final minutes of yesterday’s match to finish a highly-competitive sixty minutes that saw each side fight hard for every goal. 

Filip Jicha led his team as usual, commanding the Czech Republic attack throughout the match. His Belarusian counterpart and stand-out player his team, Siarhei Rutenka, also stood out and scored the most goals for his side.

Tonight’s match, when the two EHF Champions League stars come head to head, should therefore be an exciting one. 

The winner of this meeting will take 17th place on the final ranking of the championship, as well as the President’s Cup title.