Bangladesh thrash Sri Lanka in SAFF U-20 Women’s Championship

POBNEWS24, Dhaka July 11, 2025 : Bangladesh showed their dominance right from the start of the SAFF U-20 Women’s Championship. Swapna-Sagarika’s team thrashed Sri Lanka in the first match at the Bashundhara Kings Arena in Dhaka. Mosammat Sagarika scored a hat-trick in a spectacular 9-1 win.
Coach Peter Butler kept eight of the 23 Asian Cup qualifiers in the starting eleven today. The home team was seen in an aggressive form as soon as the opening whistle blew. Midfielder Swapna Rani gave the team the lead with a free-kick in the second minute of the game. Munki Akhtar doubled the lead just three minutes later. The Sri Lankan defense, which was upset from the start, could not stop Bangladesh’s dynamic attack.
Despite missing golden opportunities in the 15th and 19th minutes, Sagarika got on the scoresheet in the 37th minute. The ‘number ten’ put the ball into the net with a gentle touch from Sinha Jahan’s cross. Although they scored two more goals in the first half, they were disallowed due to offside.
Bangladesh went on a goal spree after the break. During this time, Bangladesh celebrated six goals against the Sri Lankans. In the 48th minute, Munki, in the 50th minute, Sinha, and then in the 53rd and 58th minutes, Sagarika completed her hat-trick by scoring two goals in a row. In the 85th minute, Rupa Akhter made the scoreline 8-0. Rupa evaded the eyes of the opposing defenders from the flood corner. After 90 minutes, Sri Lanka got a consolation goal. Opponent footballer Layanshika took advantage of the weakness in Bangladesh’s defense. Soon after, Shanti Mardi gifted Bangladesh the ninth goal.
Nepal, Bhutan and Sri Lanka are participating in the current edition along with Bangladesh. The format of the tournament has changed due to India’s withdrawal. Each team will play against each other twice in a round-robin league system. The team with the highest points will be the champion. Bangladesh won the title jointly with India in the last edition of this competition in 2024. The red-green girls have already won the title four times in five editions.
Bangladesh will take the field against Nepal on July 13. Then they will play two matches against Bhutan on July 15 and 17. The Afghan team will face Sri Lanka for the second time on July 19, and the opponent will be Nepal again in the final match of the tournament on July 21.
Although five countries were supposed to participate in the tournament, India eventually withdrew its name. Therefore, this edition of SAFF has started with these four countries – Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Bhutan. The format of the tournament has also changed. Now four teams will play against each other twice in a round-robin league system. Each team will get six matches. And the team with the highest points will win the coveted trophy.
After playing their second match against Nepal on July 13, Bangladesh’s women’s opponents will be Bhutan in two consecutive matches on July 15 and 17. Swapna-Sagarika will face the Sri Lankans again on July 19. And Bangladesh will face Nepal in their last match on July 21.
Bangladesh’s achievement in the age-based category is quite heavy. They last won the competition jointly with India in 2024. As such, Bangladesh has won the title four times in five editions so far.