Holders Bashundhara Kings is  just inches away to clinch the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) Football crown for the 3rd times in a row beating Chittagong Abahani  Ltd by 1-0 goal in a hard-fought match at Shaheed Direndranath Dutta Stadium in Cumilla on Thursday.
 
After a barren first half, Gambian striker Nuha Marong scored the match winning goal for the Kings in the 52nd minute by a neat placing shot from close after dodging past Abahani custodian Saiful  in the day's keenly contested match (1-0).
 
With the day's feat, last two times champions Badhundhara Kings comfortably maintained their solo lead in the league table securing 48 points from 19 matches and needed just a win in their remaining three matches to assure the league title.

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Six times champions Dhaka Abahani Limited followed the leader distantly with 38 points from 18 encounters,  playing one match less than the Kings
 
The Kings will play three remaining tough matches against Saif SC on July 18, Dhaka Abahani Ltd on July 24 and Sheikh Jamal DC on July 30, but they needed just three points out of possible nine to clinch the 12-team BPL title 2022.
 
With the day's win, star studded Basundhara Kings not only came close to league crown but also  returned to the winning way after a 1-1 draw with Dhaka Mohammedan SC in the previous match.
 
After suffering the 7th defeat, Chittagong Abahani went down to the 7th slot in the league table with their previous credit of 26 points from 19 matches.
 
After conceding the goal, Chittagong Abahani created strong pressure over their giant rivals but failed to change the fate of the match.

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Abahani custodian Saiful displayed his brilliance under the bar in the day's match and saved a series of Kings good attempts.