Bangladesh’s hopes of securing a bronze medal in the Asian Games ended with a heavy 63-run defeat to Sri Lanka in the third-place play-off.
The result means Bangladesh’s men’s cricket team will leave the Games without a medal. The women’s side also failed to win a medal in the competition, leaving Bangladesh’s only medal at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games as a bronze in wushu.
Bangladesh had made a promising start after losing the toss and being asked to bowl first. Mehedi Hasan struck twice in the third over, while Aliss Al Islam, making his international debut, claimed his first international wicket soon afterwards. Sohan de Livera was also run out during Aliss’s over.
Sri Lanka were in serious trouble at 21 for four after 3.5 overs. At that stage, Bangladesh appeared to have seized control of the contest.
The momentum, however, gradually shifted.
Arachchige and Bandara steadied the Sri Lankan innings with a 33-run partnership from 40 balls. Their stand gave the middle order enough time to rebuild after the early collapse. Bandara eventually fell to Rishad Hossain while attempting a sweep, having scored 18 from 24 deliveries.
Sri Lanka reached 51 for four after 10 overs, still well short of a commanding total. Bangladesh needed to maintain its pressure through the middle overs, but the final phase of the innings proved decisive.
From the 14th over onwards, Sri Lanka accelerated sharply. Mustafizur Rahman conceded 25 runs in the over, including runs from a no-ball and wides. He was Bangladesh’s only specialist pace option in the match and had also conceded 23 runs in an over against Pakistan in the previous game.
Rishad had been economical in his opening two overs, conceding only nine runs. His final two overs, however, cost 37 runs as Sri Lanka launched a late assault.
Tharindu Ratnayake was the chief aggressor. He reached his half-century from just 27 balls and continued attacking until he was dismissed by Mustafizur, caught by Rishad. Ratnayake finished with a blistering 65 from 32 balls, striking seven fours and five sixes.
Sri Lanka added 83 runs in the final five overs and finished on 165 for nine from their allotted 20 overs.
Mehedi Hasan took two wickets for 19 runs, while Saif Hasan claimed two for 28 and Mustafizur finished with two for 43. Rishad took one wicket for 46 runs.
Bangladesh therefore needed 166 runs to win and claim the bronze medal. Instead, their chase quickly unravelled.
Saif Hasan, Tanzid Hasan Tamim and Litton Das all departed without scoring. Tawhid Hridoy, who had impressed against Pakistan in the previous match, was expected to provide stability, but he managed only 11 from six balls before being dismissed.
After 4.2 overs, Bangladesh were 23 for four and their hopes of mounting a successful chase were already under severe pressure.
The situation deteriorated further when Parvez Hossain and Mehedi Hasan were dismissed from successive deliveries, both caught behind. Mehedi was unhappy with the umpire’s decision, believing that the ball had not made contact with his bat. Bangladesh were then 64 for six.
There was little resistance from the lower order. Yasir Ali scored 21, Parvez made 20 and Rishad contributed 10. Nasum Ahmed provided some late resistance after coming in at number nine, scoring 26 from 28 balls. His effort helped prevent the defeat from becoming even heavier.
Bangladesh were eventually bowled out for 102 in 17.3 overs, 63 runs short of Sri Lanka’s total.
For Sri Lanka, Thushara, Ratnayake, Viyaskanth and Sahan took two wickets each.
The defeat brought Bangladesh’s men’s campaign to a disappointing end. After appearing to have Sri Lanka in deep trouble at 21 for four, Bangladesh were unable to sustain their early advantage. Sri Lanka’s late batting surge then exposed the gap between the two sides, while Bangladesh’s top-order collapse made the chase almost impossible.
With the men’s and women’s teams both failing to reach the medal positions, cricket did not add to Bangladesh’s medal tally at the Games. Their sole medal from the Asian Games came in wushu, where the country secured a bronze.