HANGZHOU, Oct. 1 (Xinhua) -- Despite a 40-17 victory over Kazakhstan on Sunday, China failed to qualify for the men's handball semifinal at the Hangzhou Asian Games, with one win and two losses in the main round Group II.
China survived the preliminary round with an opening win over Thailand and a defeat to Kuwait, before suffering two straight losses to Japan and Qatar in the main round, leading to their early elimination.
Despite having exit early, China still saved no efforts to play in their game against Kazakhstan, and they took the initiative with an 8-2 run and extended their momentum to win 40-17 to conclude their Asiad journey.
"We made some mistakes in previous matches which got us eliminated," said China head coach Shareika Aleh. "We made great efforts in the main round, but the opponents were too tough to beat."
"We need to do a lot better in both offense and defense on the international stage, and try to adapt and improve through time," he added.
Meanwhile, Kuwait secured two wins against South Korea and Iran on Friday and Saturday respectively to qualify for the semifinal, despite losing to medal contenders Bahrain 34-25 on Sunday.
Jang Dong-hyun scored a winner with less than a minute remaining to lift South Korea 25-24 over Iran, while Qatar beat Japan 32-29 in a hard-fought match.
The semifinals are scheduled for Tuesday, with Bahrain taking on Japan and Qatar playing against Kuwait. On the women's side, China will play South Korea, while Japan encounter Kazakhstan.
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