South Korea came through in an epic battle ©Asian Handball Federation

South Korea have sealed an epic win over Japan, in the semi-finals of the Asian Men's Handball Championship in Kuwait.

The fans at Shaikh Saad Al-Abdullah Sports Hall Complex witnessed a classic, with South Korea needing overtime to come through 34-32.

Japan held a 19-16 advantage at halftime but couldn't hold on to that lead, and will now play in the third-place game on Monday (January 27).

In the other semi-final, the winners of the last three editions, Qatar, proved too strong for Bahrain, triumphing 28-24. 

Record winners South Korea have won the event nine times, but not since 2012.

All four semi-finalists can celebrate qualifying for the 2021 Men's World Championship in Egypt. 

In earlier matches, Australia defeated arch-rivals New Zealand 37-24 in Placement Group 3, while Hong Kong, China lost 42-25 to Iraq.

Saudi Arabia defeated Kuwait 24-19 to finish seventh, while United Arab Emirates Edged Iran 29-26 for fifth place.

Tomorrow sees the 9-13 places decided, with the finals on Monday (January 27).