India qualify for SAFF semis after laboured win over Nepal

Dhaka: Title aspirants India reached the semifinal of the SAFF Championships following their unconvincing 1-0 win over Nepal in a Group A match.

The India Under-23 side were done a huge favour by Nepalese goalkeeper Bikash Malla who fumbled with a Robert Lalthalma piledriver in the 17th minute and inadvertently pushed the ball across the line while trying to gather it. Sukhwinder Singh`s boys now have two wins to their credit, having beaten Afghanistan by an identical margin in their opening game on December 5, enough to qualify for the last four stage without doing anything great.The first half was evenly contested but the Nepalese came back strongly in the second session and they laid siege of the Indian goal in the last few minutes. But the Indian defence was equal to the task and they survived a flurry of corners from the Nepalese. For Nepal, most of the attack originated from mid-fielders Bijay Gurung and Anjan. The duo fed striker Anil Gurung, who play for the Indian I-League side Shillong Lajong.Gurung had a few shots at the Indian goal but failed to beat Indian goalkepeer Arindam Bhattacharya, who had a fine day for the second consecutive match today. In the 34th minute, diminutive Gurung was perfectly positioned for a header but he nodded a few inches over the bar to the disappointment of the handful of their supporters at the stand. PTI