The first day of the 2024 IHF Women’s Youth World Championship continued on Wednesday with four other matches, including two all-European duels. Brazil, Spain and Czechia had no problems clinching their opening wins, while Switzerland grabbed two points against Romania in the last minute.
Group B
- Brazil vs Kosovo 39:21 (19:11)
Group G
- Romania vs Switzerland 24:25 (16:12)
- Egypt vs Spain 22:37 (11:19)
Group H
- Czechia vs Iceland 28:17 (16:4)
What happened: Brazil, which are playing their eighth IHF Women’s Youth World Championship, enjoyed a commanding win against Kosovo, who made their debut in the competition. The European side had their only lead in the fifth minute (3:2) before the Brazilians started to pull clear and were up 11:5 midway through the first half. The South Americans did an excellent in attack, scoring 39 goals, with left back Raquel Cardoso Brandao becoming their top scorer with eight goals. Besides, Brazil’s goalkeepers Mellysse De Souza Araujo and Sophia Ludwig Kieling combined for 15 saves, and their heroics helped their team to score 14 goals from fast breaks.
In an all-European clash in Group G, Switzerland made an impressive comeback against Romania, claiming a hard-fought 25:24 win and making a step closer towards the main round. The Romanian side led by five goals early in the second half (17:12), but as they had 22 turnovers throughout the match, Switzerland hit back. At the Swiss team, left wing Era Baumann stood out with her six goals, and the latest of them – 28 seconds before the final buzzer – secured her team an opening victory.
In the same group, Spain also opened their account in the tournament, defeating Egypt by 15 goals. The European team took an early control of the game, opening up a 11:3 lead by the 18th minute, and they went on to dominate. 13 of their 14 outfield players put their names on the scoresheet, with Nayra Solis Rodriguez becoming the top scorer with seven goals, while goalkeepers Goundo Gassama and Udane Bernabe combined for 15 saves.
Czechia also enjoyed an excellent start in the competition, beating fellow European side Iceland by 11 goals. The Czech side opened the game with 5:0 run and continued to rely on solid defence and goalkeeping, conceding just four goals in the first half. After the restart, Iceland’s attacking efficiency improved, but it stood at just 41%, which was not enough to claim any points. 11 outfield players netted at least once for Czechia, with left wing Claudia Rampova having the biggest impact with six goals.
Stat of the day: Czech goalkeeper Nikola Fadrna played a particular role in her team’s win over Iceland, boasting 14 saves for a 56% saving efficiency.
What’s next: Four matches are still to be played on the opening day of the 2024 IHF Women’s Youth World Championship, as home side People’s Republic of China face Greenland, and the European heavyweights Norway and Denmark also enter the court, facing their Asian rivals Kazakhstan and Chinese Taipei, respectively.
