By Disha Gupta
Of the eight teams playing in the 2025 CAFA Nations Cup, just two had a lower ranking than India in the FIFA Rankings. Nevertheless, India came third, courtesy of a penalty shootout victory against Oman (1-1 in normal time, 3-2 in penalties). The game was a true representation of India’s play under new coach Khalid Jamil.
During the tournament, India demonstrated how resilient they are to defend against, their capacity to exploit errors in the defense of the opponent, yet also their difficulties in generating solid attacking opportunities.
India were criticized for playing too defensively in their last match against weaker-ranked Afghanistan, where they played to a goalless draw. Therefore, coach Khalid Jamil switched the lineup by starting Lallianzuala Chhangte and Vikram Pratap Singh over less attacking-minded Ashique Kuruniyan and Jithin.
India had a chance to capitalize on some disorganization in the Oman penalty box. Muhammad Uvais, whose long throw-ins tend to function as set-pieces for India, delivered a deep throw into the penalty area. The Omani defense couldn’t clear it, and Anwar Ali got in a powerful header to the right of the goalkeeper. But the Oman goalkeeper made a good save to prevent the ball from going in.
India was without Sandesh Jhingan in this match, as the experienced defender had to return home after suffering a fractured cheekbone in their 2-1 win against Tajikistan. Whether his absence caused it or not, communication problems began to appear between the centre-back pair, Anwar Ali and Rahul Bheke, and goalkeeper Sandhu. Oman nearly took advantage of this confusion just before the 30th minute, when Ahmed Al-Rawahi’s shot went just wide of the goal.
India’s failure to provide attacking cutting edge saw them go into halftime without a goal, despite opportunities. Lallianzuala Chhangte broke down the left side with a good run and played a good pass to Irfan Yadwad. Yadwad had the ball at his feet with no defender within reach and simply had to tap it home but he was off target.
Oman’s Ali Al-Busaidi was given a red card early, so India was in charge and Oman defended. Oman attempted to attack in extra time but were unsuccessful. In the penalty shootout, India was ahead 2-0 since Oman had missed their first two attempts. Oman rallied when their goalkeeper stopped Anwar’s shot and Udanta missed. India’s goalkeeper Sandhu saved the last penalty from Al Yahmadi to give India the victory.