Serbia enjoyed another dominant performance as Group D at the 23rd IHF Women’s World Championship continued on Sunday. The 2013 World Championship silver medallists opened the day by beating Cameroon by 13 goals, before the runners-up at the 2015 edition, The Netherlands, secured their first two points with a clear victory against People’s Republic of China.

 

The final match of Round 2 for Group D saw a thrilling contest between Germany and Republic of Korea in a packed stadium, which ended with the hosts taking another two points and moving up to join Serbia at the top of the table. 

 

GROUP D

Cameroon vs Serbia 21:34 (9:20)

 

2013 World Championship runners-up Serbia showed their class once again, as they had little trouble defeating Cameroon to claim their second two points and stay in the race to top the Group D table. Just as they did against PR of China in Round 1, Serbia raced ahead to an early advantage, leading 6:0 as the clock hit 10 minutes and Cameroon continued to look for their first goal. 

 

After Cameroon scored for the first time in the 14th minute, they turned a nine-goal deficit into a difference of six in the space of two minutes – but it was very clear which side was in control. Dijana Stevin took Serbia to 10 goals in the 17th minute on a fast break, and the European team continued to increase their lead to hold a considerable advantage of 11 at the break. 

 

Cameroon recovered from their slow start and kept the difference more or less the same in the second period, but the two points were decided in Serbia’s favour long before the final whistle. 

 

“It’s good to start with these kinds of games. Of course we had respect before, but it’s good for the team confidence. It’s very important how you open the championship, so we are happy of course, and we have to look forward to the next game,” said Serbia back Sanja Damnjanovic. 

 

“They are very strong, really strong. They are really experienced, they are very good players. They have good team cohesion. You can see they have been playing for a long time together. They are really a great team,” was Cameroon goalkeeper Linda Awu Bessong Epah’s high praise of their opponents. 

 

Player of the Match presented by adidas: Katarina KRPEZ SLEZAK (SRB)

 

People’s Republic of China vs Netherlands 15:40 (9:20)

 

The Netherlands followed the example set by Serbia earlier on Sunday to the letter, creating exactly the same advantage by half-time as their fellow European side. Though the performance was not without a few too many unforced errors, the 2015 silver medallists nevertheless earned their first two points of the World Championship – and with it a much-needed boost of confidence ahead of the difficult games to come against Serbia, Germany and the physical Cameroon team. 

 

“We knew we had to win to take those two points. We started really well,” said Netherlands line player Yvette Broch. “I think we did a good job today.”

 

After the Netherlands quickly moved ahead to a 4:1 lead in the opening minutes, PR of China coach Jesper Holmris changed to a more offensive 6-0 defence, which stemmed the flow of goals somewhat. Still, the Netherlands victory was never in question, as they led by 11 goals at the break and only continued to increase the advantage in the second period. The Netherlands coach Helle Thomsen was able to rotate through her entire bench during the 60 minutes as they cruised to a clear 25-goal victory. 

 

“It’s very hard to lose by 25. It’s not fun for any athlete or coach, but I think Netherlands were two levels better than we were,” said China coach Holmris, though his counterpart Thomsen commended her opponents’: “China fought for 60 minutes, right to the end.”

 

Player of the Match presented by adidas: Estavana POLMAN (NED)

 

Republic of Korea vs Germany 18:23 (10:11)

 

Despite the resounding support for Germany in the full Arena Leipzig, Republic of Korea started the match stronger, creating a 7:4 advantage after 10 minutes thanks to their fast, creative positional play. At the other end of the court, the hosts had trouble with missed shots while Korea did not, which was one of the key differences early in the match. Midway through the first half, Germany coach Michael Biegler brought in Katja Kramarczyk in place of Clara Weltering, when Korea led by two at 8:6. Kramarczyk, who recorded a 60% save rate in the first half, was crucial in the hosts’ game as she went on to make important saves, including two penalties. 

 

“We wanted to play good defence. That was the key today,” said Germany line player Julia Behnke after the match, and her teammate Friederike Gubernatis agreed: “We were better in defence, and in offence we made our goals and didn’t make mistakes.”

 

Germany strengthened in the second quarter as Korea began to make mistakes, taking the lead in the last five minutes of the half to hold a one-goal advantage at the break. With the help of the crowd behind them, Germany steadily increased the distance in the second 30 minutes while Korea looked for answers – but were often thwarted by Kramarczyk. As the last 10 minutes began Germany were in control at 19:15 and, with all the momentum on their side, the World Championship hosts flew home to the final buzzer. 

 

Following the match, Korea coach Jae Won Kang commended his players for their effort after a big game, before sharing his core focus at the moment: “Our focus is not on the group phase, it is on the round of 16. We have had lots of injuries so those players must recover so we can focus on the round of 16.”

 

Player of the Match presented by adidas: Friederike GUBERNATIS (GER)