Austria hold-off Kuwait in a high-scoring opener

Kuwait’s return to the international stage after 16 years began with a spirited performance against Austria, but it wasn’t enough to prevent a loss. A great second half performance lifted Austria to a convincing 37:26 win at the start of the competition.

GROUP C
Austria vs Kuwait 37:26 (18:16)

Kuwait started strong, holding their ground against Austria in a fast-paced first half. Although they never managed to take the lead in the first 30 minutes in Poreč, they were never down by more than three goals. Kuwait’s well-managed attack posed problems for Austria’s defence.

However, it wasn’t just Austria struggling defensively, as goals were coming in fast, forcing both sides to make perfect and quick transitions. However, it led to costly mistakes in which Kuwait had the upper hand and it allowed Austria to edge ahead with a 3-0 run, breaking an 8:8 deadlock.

Austria had to adapt without their star player Nikola Bylik and suffered another blow just a day before the start of the competition when Janko Božović suffered a knee injury during training. This forced head coach Aleš Pajović to enlist young Nicolas Paulnsteiner, but it certainly narrowed their options to the right.

As a consequence, we saw more of Lukas Hutacek and Sebastian Frimmel on the left side in the opening moment of the game, with the latter netting his 400th international goal while setting 17:13. The same three-goal gap remained at halftime.

Kuwait entered the second half determined to fight back, but they didn’t have the strength to do so. The demands of the game were too high, and it took its toll. Their attack faltered as Austria’s defence tightened. With Constantin Möstl making key saves, a total of 13 by the end of the game, Austria further widened their lead. By the 43rd minute, the gap had grown to eight (29:21), sealing the outcome of the game.

Head coach Said Hadjazi tried to shake things up late in the game with rotation, but every small comeback was soon punished by the opponent, who had 64 per cent attack efficiency compared to their 46. Kuwait’s failed strikes in the last five minutes of the game only allowed Austria to boost their confidence through easy goals, capped off by Jakob Nigg’s goal for 36:26. Austria’s second goalkeeper, Florian Kaiper, joined his teammate and the hummel Player of the Match Constantin Möstl in a great performance, stopping three out of four Kuwait’s attempts — the one conceded set the final 37:26 win for the European side,

Three back players – Mohammed Alhendal, Saif Aldawani and Mohammad Radhei – were the best scorers for Kuwait, all netting four times each. Eric Damböck and Tobias Wagner joined Sebastian Frimmel on the top scorer list with three of them scoring five times.

Kuwait will take the court on Thursday again and will pit sides with favourites France. Austria will try to confirm their status against hopeful Qatar.

hummel Player of the Match: Constantin Möstl (Austria)