Kuwait, January 21 (QNA) – The Qatari national handball team will face Saudi Arabia tomorrow, Thursday, in their first match of the main round of the 22nd Asian Men's Handball Championship, currently being held in Kuwait and continuing until Jan. 29.

The tournament serves as a qualifier for the 2027 World Championship in Germany.

The Qatari team (the defending champions) qualified for the main round after finishing second in Group A. They defeated Oman 27-15 in the first round and lost to South Korea 32-31 in the second round, finishing second behind South Korea, who topped the group. Both teams qualified for the main round.

The Qatari team will play in Group B in the main round alongside Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE. Group A consists of Kuwait, Iraq, Japan, and South Korea.

The Qatari national team is looking to secure a victory against Saudi Arabia in their opening match of the main round, before facing Bahrain on Friday and concluding their group stage matches against the UAE on Jan. 25.

The top two teams in the main round will advance to the semifinals and also qualify directly for the 2027 World Championship.

The Qatari team aim to defend their Asian title, which they have won in the last six editions, and qualify for the World Championship for the eleventh time in their history. Their best result in the World Championship was second place in the 2015 edition in Qatar.

The Qatari national team won the title in the last edition of the Asian Men's Handball Championship, held in Bahrain last year, after defeating Japan 30-24 in the final. (QNA)