T

he Indonesian men’s handball team learned a hard lesson at the 2018 Asian Games by failing to achieve at least one win in its match against Hong Kong and Saudi Arabia, both of which ended with a defeat of more than 40 goals for the opponents.

In its last Group C match, on Friday at the GOR POPKI sports arena in Cibubur, East Jakarta, Indonesia found itself in an unbalanced battle with Saudi Arabia that ended in a crushing 47-13 defeat on the day the host country celebrated its 73rd Independence Day.

Indonesia has thereby lost the opportunity to win any medal in men’s handball. Nevertheless, it will still compete in four more matches to secure a place between ninth and 13th position on the leaderboard.

“For now, regardless of whether we win or lose, I hope our players could learn from the ability of other international athletes, absorb [that knowledge] and use it to develop their skills,” said Indonesia’s coach Yoon Tae Il of South Korea after the match.

The match began with a boisterous home crowd dominating the venue, which could accommodate around 1,400 fans. Most fans were wearing white outfits, and members of the Indonesian women’s handball team were among the audience.

The Indonesian men’s team, however, displayed poor control on the field. Meanwhile, a focused Saudi Arabia produced goals as they benefitted from Indonesia’s blind spots.

Indonesian key player Rian Kurniawan blamed the team’s lack of high-level experience for the loss against a Saudi side that had competed in the 2017 World Championship in France.

“Eight months of training were not enough, and that affected our mentality. We were nervous, and it damaged our ability to control,” said Rian.