Kuwait city: 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.

According to Qatar News Agency, the Qatari team, who are the defending champions, qualified for the main round after finishing second in Group A. They managed to defeat Oman 27-15 in their opening match but narrowly lost to South Korea 32-31 in their second game, thus securing the second position behind South Korea. Both teams have progressed to the main round.

In the main round, the Qatari team will compete in Group B, which also includes Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE. Meanwhile, Group A is made up of Kuwait, Iraq, Japan, and South Korea. The Qatari national team aims to secure a victory against Saudi Arabia in their opening match of the main round, before moving on to face Bahrain on Friday and concluding their group stage matches against the UAE on Jan. 25.

The tournament's format allows the top two teams from each group in the main round to advance to the semifinals. These teams will also qualify directly for the 2027 World Championship. The Qatari team is determined to defend their Asian title, having won the championship in the last six editions, and they aim to qualify for the World Championship for the eleventh time in their history. Notably, their best result in the World Championship was securing second place in the 2015 edition held in Qatar.

In the previous edition of the Asian Men's Handball Championship, held in Bahrain last year, the Qatari national team clinched the title by defeating Japan 30-24 in the final.