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• 11 / 14 / 2007

Top favorite Cuba suffered its first loss at the 37th baseball World Cup, stunned 2-1 by the Netherlands on Wednesday.

But the loss does not affect Cuba's chance of winning gold in the final on November 18 as the 25-time World Cup champion won its previous six matches since the tournament began last Wednesday.

In the other afternoon games Wednesday, South Korea beat Germany 8-1, Japan edged past Spain 4-3 and Mexico defeated Italy 11-2.

Four games were scheduled for the evening: Taiwan-US, South Africa-Panama, Australia-Canada, Thailand-Venezuela.

So far Cuba, Australia, the Netherlands, Taiwan, the US and Japan have secured their entry into the quarter finals, starting Friday. Italy, Spain, South Africa, Venezuela, Germany and Thailand are eliminated.

The 16-team World Cup began November 7 and runs until November 18, with the games played at four stadiums in Taipei and Taichung.

Sixteen teams are participating in the biennial event staged by the International Baseball Federation (IBAF) based in Lausanne, Switzerland.

Source: Sports Plus