Bangladesh stormed into the Women’s Junior Asia Cup Hockey quarter-finals as unbeaten Challenger Pool champions after crushing Hong Kong 6-0 in China on Wednesday.
The victory gave Bangladesh a perfect 12 points from four matches. They will now face the third-placed team from the Elite Pool, with Korea or Japan likely to provide the quarter-final opposition.
Bangladesh had already beaten Chinese Taipei, Pakistan and Kazakhstan before completing their perfect pool campaign against Hong Kong.
Airin Akter and Mst Lima scored twice each. Sharika Rimon and Kona Akter added one goal apiece as Bangladesh completed their fourth straight victory.
The result also underlined Bangladesh’s attacking strength.
They scored 22 goals across four matches and conceded only once. Pakistan scored the only goal against them during the pool stage.
Rimon now leads the tournament scoring charts with six goals. Airin Akter has five, level with India’s Purnima Yadav.
Bangladesh’s run also marks a significant step forward at the Junior Asia Cup. The team had already guaranteed a top-six finish before the final match, but the Hong Kong victory secured their first pool title and maiden quarter-final appearance.
The Challenger Pool campaign started with a 7-0 victory over Chinese Taipei. Bangladesh then defeated Pakistan 5-1 before beating Kazakhstan 4-0.
