Bangladesh stormed into the semi-finals of the SAFF U-20 Championship after a 2-0 win over Sri Lanka in their first Group A match at the ANFA Complex in Nepal on Tuesday.
For Bangladesh, forward Mirajul Islam and his replacement Piash Ahmed Nova scored once each in either half of the game.
Maruful Haque鈥檚 charges will take on hosts Nepal in the top-place decider match of their group at the same venue on Thursday, while Sri Lanka have been eliminated at the group stage with two successive 聽defeats.
Earlier in the tournament opener, they lost 1-0 to Nepal.
Bangladesh鈥檚 early attacking approach paid off against Sri Lanka, with Mirajul scoring in the 17th minute following a cross from forward Rabby Hossen Rahul from the left.
Despite Sri Lanka鈥檚 pressure to make a comeback, Bangladesh came close to scoring on a few occasions in the first half.
Bangladesh could have increased the lead in the 29th minute with defender Rostom Islam, who failed to shoot on target from close range after Rahul鈥檚 free-kick from the left, while Mirajul squandered a one-on-one opportunity in the stoppage time of the first-half.
Bangladesh handled the opponent team鈥檚 pressure in the early second half as Maruful brought three fresh legs in the 60th minute with Nova replacing Mirajul.
Nova extended the margin in the 85th minute, just eight minutes after substitute forward Razu Ahmed was blocked inside the box by Sri Lanka defenders.
Meanwhile, defending champions India are leading the Group B table with a 1-0 win over Bhutan in their first match.
Bhutan will face the Maldives at 3:15pm Bangladesh Standard Time at the same venue today, when they will try out their hopes to stay in the race for a semi-final berth.
