Qatar beat Indonesia 2-0 for their second successive victory at the 7th AHF Asian Beach Handball Championship in Weihai, Shandong Province, China, yesterday.
Qatar, who had beaten Philippines 2-0 in their opening match on Saturday, were the superior team once again. The Defending champions now will take on Afghanistan in their next match.
 Qatar, who have won the title last four times, are the team to beat. The Qatari team prepared in Thailand at a training camp, ahead of the championship, facing local club teams and the Thai national team.
The competition is split into two preliminary groups of six teams each with the top two in each going directly through to the semi-final stage and the rest fighting it out for 5 to 12 place. Group A features Qatar, Vietnam, Chinese Taipei, Afghanistan, Indonesia and Philippines. Group B includes Oman, Iran, Thailand, Pakistan, Japan, and Saudi Arabia. 
The previous edition of the championship was held in Thailand in May 2017, with Qatar defeating Oman in the final to take gold. The championship in China serves as a qualifier for both the 2019 ANOC World Beach Games in Qatar and the 2020 IHF Men’s and Women’s Beach Handball Championships to be held in Italy. The top two teams in both the men’s and women’s competitions will receive a direct ticket to Italy.
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