Qatar's handball team defeated China on Thursday 49-18 in the opening match of Group B in the 2020 Asian Men's Handball Championship in Kuwait.

The competition, which concludes on January 27, also acts as a qualifier to the world championships that will take place in Egypt in 2021.

Qatar did not find any difficulty in winning the match, finishing the first half 23-8 to virtually end the competition. Team coach Youssef Al Hail expressed his satisfaction with the performance of his team in their opening match. He added that the match showed the gap between the Qatari team, whether technically or physically, and their Chinese counterparts. He noted that the coaching staff did not have enough information on the Chinese team, and as a result did not know what they were up against.

Al Hail maintained however that Saturday's match against Japan will prove to be more challenging.

Source: QNA

Cover image credit: Qatar Handball Association