 "The Indian men's football team celebrates after defeating Oman 3-2 on penalties after a 1-1 draw to finish third in the CAFA Nations Cup and collect the bronze medal. Image credit: X/@IndianFootball")
India signed off from the CAFA Nations Cup on Monday the same way they had begun – with a victory, finishing third in the tournament and collecting the bronze medal in the process. The significance of the two victories, however, couldn’t be more different.
The 2-1 victory over co-hosts Tajikistan on 29 August , in which defenders Anwar Ali and Sandesh Jhingan had taken the opposition by surprise and scored inside the first 15 minutes, helped begin Khalid Jamil’s tenure as head coach on winning note. The Blue Tigers would then be handed a reality check in the form of a 0-3 thrashing at the hands of Asian heavyweights Iran, which was followed by a goalless draw against Afghanistan.
India had the opportunity to sign off with a victory after advancing to the next round despite finishing level on 4 points with Tajikistan, thanks to their victory over the tournament co-hosts earlier in the tournament. The only problem was that they were up against Oman – a team that sat 54 places above them on the FIFA rankings at 79, and also a team they had never beaten in 10 previous meetings.
Udanta’s equaliser turns the tide in India’s favour
And for a fleeting moment, it appeared as if the match against Oman would head down the same route as the loss against Iran, in which the Indian defence had managed to keep the scoreline 0-0 at half-time, only to unravel after conceding around the hour mark.
Jamil’s Blue Tigers, however, were in no mood to repeat the mistakes against Iran. Not only were they able to limit the damage after Jameel Al-Yahmadi broke the deadlock in the 57th minute, Udanta Singh made an instant impact as a substitute by scoring the equaliser with a diving header in the 81st minute.
The Indians were an upbeat side after Udanta’s equaliser, and managed to keep the Reds at bay to not only take the game into extra time but into the penalty shootout. The trio of Lallianzuala Chhangte, Rahul Bheke and Jithin MS would then score in the shootout while Gurpreet Singh Sandhu managed to block the last shot, taken by Al-Yahmadi, to seal India’s maiden victory over Oman.
What made the victory even sweeter for the Indians was the fact that in addition to the gulf in rankings, they had beaten a side coached by Carlos Queiroz, the man who had managed Real Madrid’s ‘Galacticos’ generation from 2003 to 2004 and has also worked alongside Cristiano Ronaldo as Portugal coach.
The result was cause for celebration across the Indian football community, with the official account of the Indian Super League as well as clubs such as Punjab FC joining fans in congratulating Jamil, Sandhu and the rest of the Blue Tigers for believing in themselves and pulling off a victory that was much-needed at a time when the sport is in a state of crisis in the cricket-mad nation.
How the Indian football community reacted to the victory over Oman
Here are select reactions to India’s triumph over Oman: