Day 2 of the World Water Polo 4×4 Championships in Dubrovnik saw Serbia, Spain and hosts Croatia maintain perfect records in the men’s tournament, while Australia, NAB and the United States continued their unbeaten starts in the women’s competition.
The biggest drama came in the men’s clash between Montenegro and NAB, the only match of the day to go beyond three sets. NAB moved ahead twice, including a 5-1 victory in the third, but Montenegro responded by taking the fourth 5-4 to force a shootout. Montenegro then prevailed 4-3 on penalties to complete a 3-2 victory.
Serbia, Spain and Croatia all moved onto six points from their opening two matches. Serbia were tested by Hong Kong, China 1 before completing a 3-0 victory, while Spain comfortably defeated Hong Kong, China 2. Croatia also needed to work for their straight-sets win against Malta, taking the opening two sets by only a single goal.
Japan produced the biggest scoreline of the day, winning all three sets against Mongolia 8-0. The USA and Australia also secured their first outright victories, while Bulgaria edged three tight sets against Georgia.
In the women’s competition, all four matches finished 3-0.
Australia dominated South Africa, while NAB continued their perfect start with victory over Greece. The United States conceded just once across three sets against Türkiye, winning 6-0, 5-1 and 5-0.
Spain also responded to their opening-day defeat against the USA by beating hosts Croatia in straight sets, winning 4-1, 5-1 and 4-2. Australia, NAB and the USA now lead the women’s standings with six points each, with Spain and Croatia on three.
Results
Men
Japan 3-0 Mongolia
8-0, 8-0, 8-0
Bulgaria 3-0 Georgia
4-2, 3-2, 3-1
USA 3-0 Lithuania
4-2, 4-2, 5-1
Australia 3-0 Saudi Arabia
3-0, 5-1, 4-2
Serbia 3-0 Hong Kong, China 1
3-2, 6-1, 5-3
Spain 3-0 Hong Kong, China 2
8-0, 7-2, 4-1
Montenegro 3-2 NAB
0-2, 3-2, 1-5, 5-4, 4-3 PSO
Croatia 3-0 Malta
4-3, 6-5, 4-2
Women
Australia 3-0 South Africa
8-0, 5-1, 7-2
NAB 3-0 Greece
5-2, 5-1, 6-2
USA 3-0 Türkiye
6-0, 5-1, 5-0
Spain 3-0 Croatia
4-1, 5-1, 4-2
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