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Bangladesh’s women’s Under-20 hockey team missed out on a place in the World Cup after losing 2-0 to Japan in the quarter-final of the Women’s Junior Asia Cup in Mokpo, China, on Thursday.
Bangladesh put up a strong fight against the formidable Japanese side but could not secure the victory needed to qualify directly for the World Cup.
Four Asian teams are set to qualify for the Women’s Under-20 World Cup, with the four semi-finalists from the Junior Asia Cup earning berths. The host nation will qualify automatically.
Bangladesh head coach Arif Ali, a Pakistani, believes Bangladesh could still have a chance of qualifying if India hosts the next World Cup. In that case, the team finishing fifth in the Junior Asia Cup could potentially earn a World Cup spot.
Bangladesh will play a fifth-place playoff match the day after tomorrow, with South Korea or Malaysia likely to be their opponent.
Japan, one of the stronger teams in women’s hockey, were held goalless by Bangladesh in the first quarter. Japan then took a 1-0 lead in the second quarter and maintained the advantage through the third.
Bangladesh conceded another goal in the final quarter to suffer a 2-0 defeat.
Meanwhile, Bangladesh’s men’s Under-20 team will face Japan tomorrow. A victory would keep Bangladesh’s hopes of returning to the Junior World Cup alive, while a defeat would send them into the seventh-place playoff.
