The Sri Lankan junior soccerites gave a good account of themselves before going down fighting 0-1 against the favourites Bangladesh in their SAFF Under-20 Football Tournament opening match played at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneshwar, India.
Both Sri Lanka and Bangladesh figured in a keen contest for supremacy from the kick-off with a couple of scoring opportunities also going astray due to lack of finishing touches.
However, two-time runners-up Bangladesh changed their tactics during the second half, and they were keener to retain possession for a long period giving nothing away to their opponents.
The Sri Lankan defence eventually cracked under increased pressure as Bangladesh executed a crucial corner-kick with Mirazul Islam firing the match winning goal from a long-range in the 71st minute of play.
Earlier, two-time champions Nepal got off to a flying start as they trounced the Maldives 4-0 in the curtain raiser match of the tournament.
Meanwhile, Sri Lanka will come out for the second time when they take on Nepal today at 8.00 p.m. after the clash between the defending champions India and Bangladesh at 4.00 p.m.
The tournament will be conducted in a round-robin format and the top two teams at the end of the group stage will face each other in the final on August 5.
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