Japan end Bangladesh’s unbeaten run, World Cup dream

Bangladesh’s hopes of securing a place in the FIH Women’s Junior World Cup were dashed on Thursday as the women in red and green suffered a 2-0 defeat to Japan in the quarterfinals of the Women’s Junior Asia Cup in China.

Bangladesh will now play a fifth-sixth place-deciding match against either Malaysia or South Korea. The top four teams in the tournament will qualify for the next edition of the Women’s Junior World Cup.

Tap here to add The Daily Star as a trusted source

The women in red and green entered the quarterfinals as unbeaten champions of the Challenger Pool, having won all four of their matches. But they fell short against Japan, who finished third in the Elite Pool, in the teams’ maiden meeting at this level.

Arif Ali’s charges fought hard against a strong Japanese side and kept them at bay until Yoshino Hirai converted a penalty stroke in the 26th minute to give Japan the lead.

Bangladesh pushed for an equaliser but could not break down Japan, who sealed the victory in the 47th minute when Momoka Suzuki scored from open play.

Despite missing out on the semifinals and, with it, a maiden Junior World Cup ticket, head coach Arif Ali took pride in his side’s performance against Japan and looked forward to producing a strong result in their fifth-sixth place-deciding match.