Sunil Chhetri’s 91st international goal takes India to SAFF Championship semis | Football News – Times of India

BENGALURU: Underdogs Nepal kept eight-time champions India in check for more than an hour before skipper Sunil Chhetri spearheaded the hosts to a 2-0 win in their second Group A match at the SAFF Championship here on Saturday.
The win also secured India’s place in the semifinal.
Earlier, Kuwait blanked Pakistan 4-0 to become the first team to enter the last four. Pakistan and Nepal, who face off on Tuesday, were both eliminated.
Chhetri’s 91st international goal came in the 62nd minute as India began the second half determined to shed the lethargy they had shown in the first. Chhetri, who was quiet for most of the first half, connected a fine cross from Mahesh Singh who went in through the left flank. It came a minute after both Chhetri and Anirudh Thapa went close to scoring a goal.
Nepal thought they had escaped a second goal in the 70th minute as Chhetri’s shot hit the crossbar but it was not to be as the ball bounced back for Mahesh to get on the score sheet.

Ranked 172nd, Nepal looked the better team midway into the first session as they peppered the Indian defence with a few attacks.
The match started with a heavy downpour. With the ground staff using sprinklers just before the start of the game, rain made the turf more slippery.
India, who turned out in bright orange jerseys, twice went close to taking the lead in the first 20 minutes. But attacking medio Sahal Abdul Samad failed to make it count on both the occasions.
In the 15th minute, he dribbled a bit too much in front of the box allowing the Nepal defenders to smother the danger. A minute later, after being fed by an overlapping Akash Mishra through the right, he tried to guide the ball with his right foot but it went wide off the target.
Nepal’s first real threat came in the 18th minute. Arik Bista tested India goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh Sandhu with a powerful shot but the lanky custodian blocked it.

(AI image)
Kuwait rout Pakistan 4-0 en route to semifinals
Pakistan’s hopes of entering the semifinals of the SAFF Championship were dealt a severe blow by Kuwait who routed them 4-0 . It was Kuwait’s second win as they strolled into the last four with agame left.
India’s neighbours entered the match at the Sree Kanteerava stadium after a two-day break but it appeared as if Pakistan were yet to recover from the 4-0 thrashing from India in their opening fixture.
With two defeats in two games, Pakistan crashed out of the tournament.
Striker Mobarak Al-Faneeni led Kuwait’s attack as he almost sealed the fate of Pakistan with two goals before halftime. The 23-year-old, who has been turning out for his country for the last four years, put Kuwait 2-0 ahead in the 17th minute and found his second in the first minute of added time. This after Hasan Alanezi opened the scoring in the 11th minute.
Changing ends, Kuwait continued to dictate terms and made full use of the vacant spaces in the Pakistan defence to launch their robust raids. Eid Alrashidi fetched them the fourth goal in the 69th minute.