Sri Lanka and Afghanistan advance at Bangladesh’s expense

Massive victory for Afghans and loss means Bangladesh bow out despite winning two games.

Sport can be cruel at times. Bangladesh were at the top of Group B after the first two games, but a loss to Sri Lanka in the final match sent them out of the Under 19 Asia Cup.
"We knew we were not guaranteed a place in the semi-finals, yet it is very, very disappointing for us to go out of this competition this way," said Mehedy Hasan, the Bangladesh captain.
"I think we were about 30-odd runs short. We had to win the game and we just couldn't do it."
Kusal Mendis, the Sri Lankan captain, led from the front with a century off 112 balls to clinch an eight-wicket thriller at the Abu Dhabi Cricket Council Oval-2.
He featured in two partnerships, adding 47 for the third wicket with Minod Bhanuka (26) and 108 for the fourth wicket with Priyamal Perera (62 not out) as Sri Lanka chased down 203 with 11 deliveries to spare.
Bangladesh had Sri Lanka in a bit of a spot at 25 for two in the ninth over, then picked up five wickets for 13 runs as their rivals fell from 180 for three to 193 for eight before Perara and AK Tyronne saw them over the line.
"Initially, my task was to hold on at one end, but at 25 for two in nine overs it was important not to fall back too far on the run rate," Mendis said.
"I managed to do that in the company of Bhanuka and Priyamal, who did a great job to take us over the line after losing our way towards the end. We could have won it more easily had I not played a rash stroke."
Mendis was caught at deep cover after reaching his hundred off 112 balls.
Sri Lanka will meet India in tomorrow's semi-final, and Mendis was hoping to take the momentum forward after they bounced back from a shock defeat to Afghanistan in the opener.
"We have played against India in a three-match friendly series recently and both teams will know each other well," he said. "We lost two games, but they were very close. So we're hopeful of a good result."
Afghanistan hammered Malaysia by 10 wickets, bowling them out for 40 and knocking off the winning runs in 3.2 overs to set up a semi-final against Pakistan.
"We wanted to make best use of the pitch after winning the toss. Our game plan was to get Malaysia out as quickly as possible and hit the winnings runs with the minimum overs, which we did successfully," the Afghanistan manager Shir Agha Hamkar said.
"We have prepared well and are here to win every game we play. We are ready to give any opposition a good run. We have good batsmen, good bowlers and a good-fielding side. We are three-in-one and have given 100 per cent in every game."
In Group A, the UAE went winless in three games, losing to Nepal by four wickets. It was a disappointing campaign for them, failing to get any team out in the 50 overs and failing to bat their full quota of overs.
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