Bangladesh finish fourth after defeat to Sri Lanka in CAVA Cup place decider

Bangladesh concluded their CAVA Cup Men’s Volleyball campaign with a fourth-place finish after suffering a straight-sets defeat to Sri Lanka in the bronze medal match on Tuesday at the Shaheed Suhrawardy Indoor Stadium in Mirpur, Dhaka. 

The visitors proved too strong on the day, claiming a convincing 3-0 victory (25-20, 25-23, 25-20) to secure third place in the Central Asian Volleyball Association (CAVA) tournament. For Bangladesh, it was their first straight-sets loss of the competition, bringing an end to what had otherwise been a spirited campaign on home soil.

Sri Lanka started confidently, taking the opening set 25-20 as Bangladesh struggled to settle into rhythm. The home side showed greater fight in the second set, producing some thrilling rallies and strong defence, but narrowly lost 23-25 after failing to capitalise on key points. In the third set, Sri Lanka maintained their momentum and wrapped up the match 25-20, leaving the home crowd disappointed.

Ironically, Bangladesh had beaten Sri Lanka 3-2 in the round-robin stage earlier in the tournament, but this time the islanders turned the tables when it mattered most. Despite the setback, the Bangladeshi players earned praise for their fighting spirit throughout the event, which saw them record wins over Nepal, the Maldives, and Sri Lanka in the group phase.

Elsewhere on Tuesday, Nepal clinched fifth place after defeating the Maldives 3-1 in the classification match. Nepal took the first two sets 29-27 and 25-20, before the Maldives fought back to win a marathon third set 37-35. However, Nepal sealed the contest with a 25-20 win in the fourth.
The CAVA Cup final between Turkmenistan and Afghanistan is set to decide the new regional champions later in the day (Tuesday).