TEHRAN – Bahrain edged past Iran 22-20 at the 2020 Asian Men's Handball Championship on Saturday.

Asian giants Bahrain advanced to Group 1 as the winners and Iran are drawn in Group 2 as the third team.

Iran started the campaign with a 53-21 win over New Zealand at the Shaikh Saad Al-Abdullah Sports Hall Complex in Kuwait City on Saturday.

The 2020 Asian Men's Handball Championship is the 19th edition of the championship held under the aegis of Asian Handball Federation at Kuwait City, Kuwait from Jan. 16 to 27.

It acts as the Asian qualifying tournament for the 2021 World Men's Handball Championship in Egypt.