AFC Asian Cup 2023: Sunil Chhetri’s India Fail To Win Opening Tie Against Australia
Australia vs India
In what was expected to be a tough encounter for Sunil Chhetri's men in Qatar, India fell to a 2-0 defeat by the hands of Australia in the AFC Asian Cup 2023 on Saturday.
Starting off on the right note, India came close on a few occasions and looked to apply pressure on the Aussies.
Sunil Chhetri's diving header in the first half was the best chance India got in the match.
Australia took charge of the match a few moments later and piled on the pressure on the Indian defense. However, some heroic defending by Sandesh Jhingan denied the Socceroos to have a breakthrough in the game.
However, the 2nd half turned in the Aussies favour as a mistake by goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh Sandhu handed Australia their first goal of the day. The Australian side kept their attacking game on and soon got another goal courtesy of a brilliant build up play.
Injuries Hurting India
With Igor Stimac's side missing their important players in the name of defender Anwar Ali, midfielders Jeakson Singh and Abdul Sahal Ahmed, the fearless attacking style of India was not clearly evident in the performance.
With the outcome of the match turning out to be expected, the Blue Tigers will be looking to get the best out of their remaining two matches against Syria and Uzbekistan respectively.
Also Read: Satwik-Chirag Script History! Become 1st Indian Duo To Make It To Malaysian Open Final
Get Breaking News First and Latest Updates from India and around the world
on News24. Follow News24 and Download our - News24
Android App. Follow News24 on Facebook, Telegram, Google
News.